A Winthrop only ever casts with a Blade
by Makilome the Lady Autist
Summary: On the night of the murder of the Potters, Sirius Black remimbers the old family saying of the Black family's American cousins, who practice a different kind of magick. His remembrance brings the Potters back to life, and changes everything you thought you knew about one Harry Potter.
1. The Timely Intervention of Evie Winthrop

**A Winthrop only ever casts with a Blade**

 **On the night of the murder of the Potters, Sirius Black remimbers the old family saying of the Black family's American cousins, who practice a different kind of magick. His remembrance brings the Potters back to life, and changes everything you thought you knew about one Harry Potter.**

 **Cast:**

Evie Winthrop: Katie McGrapth (but with lighter but still dark hair)

Sirius Black/Atlas Winthrop: Ben Barnes (with silver eyes)

James Potter: Aaron Johnson

Lily E. Potter: Karen Gillian

Max Winthrop: Sean Bean

Eugenia Winthrop: Susan Surandon

Anna Lee Winthrop: Amy Adams

Gaius Winthrop: Matt Bomber

William Winthrop: Ben Schcentzer

Nadia Winthrop: Jennifer Lawrence (w/ platinum blonde hair)

The kids will be added as they age.

 **Chapter 1: The timely intervention of Evie Winthrop**

 **Sirius' POV**

He had come to late! The first thing he saw was his brother, his friend James dead on the floor. His stomach dropped as he rushed towards the baby's room. With James gone, he was that child's only help and he couldn't let him down! The baby's cries reached his ears, causing his heart to shatter in a thousand pieces. It took him a long moment to comprehend what he saw! Lily was gone, her long hair billowing around her. But instead of a gloating Dark Lord there was a pile of ash and a wand on the floor and baby Harry staring at him, a new scar marking his forehead and old magick in the air. And it was that moment that jogged a memory for the young Black. Something from childhood during the mandatory study of the Black Family Tree. For a moment the sights and sounds, the horror of what he saw around him dissapeared as he remembered.

" _And who are they, Mum?" asked a young Regulus. His mother's face scrunched, as though she smelt something unpleasant. "They are distantly related to us, the fools left on one of those ships bound for the new world! Something about honoring the ancestors who did so before us. Winthrops, barbarions, the whole lot of them! Runemauls, who settled in both the muggle and magickal world of the Americas! They don't even use wands!" she exclaimed in that superior tone that Sirius was learning to hate. "They say that they have studied magicks of all the lands, what our world has forgotten, can you imagine? Call us small minded here in England! Look here, there you will see their motto!" Sirius read over his mother's shoulder. "A modo semper vesalius et ferrum Winthrop." he said aloud. He translated internally, liking the sound of it. "A Winthrop only ever casts with a blade. "They use a blade instead?!" he asked excitedly. His mum hit him upside the head. "Do not delight in such a thing! It is so barbaric, so unrefined! You are better off not knowing them! They rarely come this way and when they do, you will always know them by their particular blue eyes. They are the only family where every member has the eery cold grey blue!"_

Curious when he was younger he studied what he could of the Black distant relatives, held in his high esteem for leaving the the backward magickal England behind for the exciting wilderness of the New World, to learn magicks unknown by Europe! They were rune masters of a caliber rarely heard of in their world anymore, followers of old pagan gods that long ago left the minds of the European landscape. And standing back in this nightmare, they were his only hope! He had a short time before the Order would arrive, if he was serious about what he was about to do, he had to act quickly! So Sirius went back to James form, hoisting him over his shoulder. "The things I do for you mate!" he said with a grunt. Bring the bodies of Lily and James close together he slit a cut into their palms, both of his own, and connected to his godson through his still bleeding scar with his left, while holding Lily and James' palms with his right. He focussed on his intent, what needed to be done and whom he needed to go to and said the words "A modo semper vesalius et ferrum Winthrop. Take me to my family, take me to those who heal, those who hold the power of life and death, the power of the Runes, the favor of the Norn in their hands. Magick aid me this hour!" a blinding light seared into his eyes, his screams seeming to reach forever as he held onto the hands in his for dear life!

And then the sound of a woman's voice. "Oh for the love of the gods, really?! Right in the parking lot where all the no majs can see?!" and the blurry sight of a rushing pair of long slender, denim covered legs towards them. "Du ser ingenting her" he heard shouted as the legs got closer to where he was kneeling. Something Norweigen, a descendent of old Norse. He got an eye full of long, thick, dark brown hair, blue grey eyes, haunting and in control when all he felt was panic. "Ah, a Black, should have known! Alright, keep linked to them! You can let go of the child, its the two adults who you can not seperate from! Here!" The dark haired young woman placed her finger tips of either hand on Lily and James. "Vaer sa lys som en fjaer og stiv som et brett." Shock went through his system when while still holding their hands, it felt like nothing was there. "One under each arm Black, like carrying in wood! Follow me and don't make a sound! Can't exactly explain away everything in this neighborhood, we are a mixed group here and I don't feel like explaining myself!" something in her manner reminded him of Madam Pomfrey, and it made him smile. She picked up the child, who stopped screaming for the first time since he found him in his crib. They stood up and she looked back over her shoulder. "I really hope you know what you are doing!" she said and then beckoned him to follow her.

He was shocked as they may their way into the building that the electricity was in no way effected by the obvious magick flowing through and around it. He had never seen such a thing, no one he knew even thought it was possible. Up three flights of steps they walked till they reached the door, he remember that door for the rest of his life! Room 312! The room he walked into had one of those strange muggle devices, the box that played movies, like the cinemas he became so fond of, called by Lily a tellie. He could smell chamomile tea and incense in the air. The dark haired woman moved the coffee table without a word and only a glance. "In the middle then, and don't you move! Right now you are the only thing anchoring them to the living! You are not to loose physical contact with them during the duration, understand?" she said in a commanding tone that would hear no argument. He kneeled with Lily and James where she indicated him to and began to set up a strange ritual around him, the likes of which he had never seen before! They were soon circled in salt, and infront of them was placed a bowl. Front, back, and both sides white candles were set around them and lit and then another outer circle of salt into what looked to be a pentegram.

Inside the point of the integram were runes like he had never seen before. He saw animal bones and parts, and runes carved into ivory. All of this was done faster than he could have ever imagined something could be done. "That asshole Voldemort's doing, right?" she asked, finally looking back at him. And there, right there, had to be the Black side of the young Winthrop woman coming out. "Yes it was!" he growled out. "Well it's damn lucky you got here when you did! Even an hour later and there would be nothing I could do! I CAN bring them back, but this sort of magick comes with a price. What that price will be is between you and the gods, but you have to be willing to pay whatever they ask. I can tell you this will change the entire timeline to bring them back, it will have consequences. But I can see the benefit will outweigh the risks when it comes to these two. They were not meant to die tonight. I am going to put this blessed little one to bed for a while. Then we will get to work." she answered. "And in case you are wondering, it's Evie, or Evelyn. Evelyn Winthrop. He would not forget. If she could bring them back he would give Evie Winthrop the world at her feet! She picked up Harry, who looked at her with fascination. "Evvy goood laadyy." he said to her, causing his distant cousin to smile.

"Not good, but not like the bad man either. Come little guy, time to get some sleep!" she smiled at him while she picked him up. She bounced him while she walked out of sight for the moment. Sirius had a short moment to take in his surroundings. Evie Winthrop lived in a small apartment, with a small dog, a parot, and an ancient calico cat who glared at him from a cream colored couch. Far to small for someone from his family. Something wasn't right here. Something he did not like. But before he could think longer on it the woman had come back. It was a blur from there. She cast and spoke in what sounded like actual old Norse, the candles burned almost cieling high and suddenly he could feel his friends. Fascinated he watched while the uncorpeal forms of his friends appeared. "Accio Ferrum autem Quod Abyssi" a blade with sapphire handle and silver gleaming runes and ivory sheath flew to her hand. She unsheathed it and he watched her make movements he never saw made with a blade, lights, and within those lights runes, glowing, blue, silver, gold, and red, they grew bigger as she swirled the blade around her head and then he felt something slam into him, where he could not hold himself up and it was all he could do to keep holding on to Lily and James.

He blacked out, to appear only in a cave. "Sirius, son of Orion, what would you ask of the gods?" came a strange, rasping voice. He stared into an ancient, eyeless face. A seer of the ancient world, and if he wasn't mistaken, the Seer of the time of Ragnar Lothbrok. "My friends were not meant to die, Old One. I would have what has happened be reversed to be as it should." the old one hmmed. "What you speak is true. The Goddess of the Potter line, dear Nemain your kind use to call her, the Old Raven has spoken to me. But when they come back, they will not be the same, young son of House Black. They will remember what they saw there, and establish their line with the sons of Odin. But nothing comes without a price, something your world has forgotten. And to bring back fair Lily and brave James, a sacrifice you must make. A piece of yourself. The child, must not be given into the hands of the old man. He is not who you think he is. Will you give the Potters, an aye, even yourself, into the learned hands of your cousins and heed their council? Think carefully before you answer. They will think you all dead." he answered. He replied to the old one without hesistation. "Whatever it takes!" he said. "You say that now but you Blacks have long forgotten from whom the gift of magick even comes! You can not go against your word with the gods, or all that is being done here will be undone." Sirius eyes widened.

"I understand." With those words a blast sounded out and he came back to a bowl full of his own blood, a vow. He felt weak but not to weak. "Your sacrifice has been accepted." he heard Evie said. And then he let go. And saw Lily move first. "Am I….. am I dead?" came her raspy voice. Sirius choked up. And then James, James moved, MOVED! "Where are we?" he echoed. "In America mate, in America! Our Evie just worked a miracle!" he croaked before hugging them both.


	2. Sirius Explains It All

**Chapter 2:** Sirius Explains it All

Sirius explains to Lily and James what happened, Evie explains that they are 26 years in the future, having traveled through the Veil to get to her (It is Samhain folks!). Between the 4 adults decisions are made that will change the entire story both for Evie's young daughter and Harry Potter.

 **Sirius POV**

Once they all had calmed, it dawned upon them, the feat that the young Winthrop witch had pulled off. Sirius looked at his young cousin in awe. They all did! He was able to take the time to take in her appearance now, and the differences and similarities were striking between his line and theirs. Here was the thick dark hair, long and glorious in waves falling down her back (though a dark brown instead of black). Here were the silver eyes, though a deeper, darker shade of the color with more hints of blue than the Blacks were known for. Here were the aristocratic bone structure, eyes large but well proportioned, lined in black. High cheek bones, pouting lips. However she had a high forehead, not to high, and a Germanic nose, a long swan's neck. The strong hints of red in her dark hair showing the Nordic blood in her veins. She was very well toned, one could tell she worked on her figure instead of taking weight loss potions like so many witches he knew. She had an hour glass figure, was rather petite, and her curves, well he was sure she had to beat blokes off with a stick!

"Right then, now that we are all alive and back to reality, would someone like to explain to me why we almost broke the Secrecy Statute amongst other things tonight?" her American accent and blunt way of speech sounded refreshing to the pure-blood wizard. Lily looked up, focusing back on the matters at hand. "Oh yes! Absolutely! Its just, all of this is a shock, being dead, not dead, and well, it is like a whiplash for James and I, so Sirius?" the red head implored him with her green eyes. Sirius sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Well, first off Evie, my name is Sirius Black. The people you just saved I have grown up with, they are my family in a way the Blacks never were, Lily and James Potter." she nodded at his words. "You've been fighting that fool self styled terrorist with delusions of granduier who calls himself Lord Voldemort, correct?" James and Lily for a brief moment looked indignant, but Sirius actually snorted. "Tell us how you Yanks really feel about the Dark Wanker!" he stated. "You Brits to often forget that you do have allies outside of the UK, outside of the so called Sacred 28 and that idiot can't hope to overpower us all! He hasn't even struck anywhere outside the Isles yet, because he isn't strong enough!"she said with a smirk.

"You do have a solid point Evie! But it is a matter of time before he does have the wands to be able to strike anywhere in the world. But how we got here. While we have been fighting Voldemort a prophecy was made, about how the bastard would finally be defeated." he stated. "You Europeans really put too much stock into prophecy!" she muttered, causing him to rolelhis eyes. He continued like he did not hear her. " _The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches… born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies… and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not…"_ It goes on, I did not hear anymore. There were two boys born during that time with parents that defied Voldemort thrice, Harry and Nellville Longbottom." Evie nodded. "And so the Potters here went into hiding, but did you use a Fidelius?" she asked. "We did. And they were betrayed." he felt a little offended when Evie smacked her forehead. "When will you all ever learn?! So, who betrayed the Potters?" she asked. Both Lily and James turned to him as well. "No, not Peter!" James said in shock. A growl came out of him. "I am sorry James, but its true, that rat betrayed us to the Dark Lord and killed 13 muggles in the process and blamed me where everyone could hear!" both Potters looked shocked.

"Alright but there are more shocks for tonight folks! Tell me, what was the date and year when you all made your way here?" she asked the question as though she already knew the answer. SIrius looked at her strangely. Lily answered her. "It's October 31, 1981." she said. "And how old do I look, cousin?" she asked him. "Same age as us, why are you asking, surely you know how old you are?" he said. She nodded. Then she continued. "I, Evelyn Agatha Winthrop am 22 years old, and was born on November 5, 1984." he stared at her. "You're having on at us!" he accused. She pulled something out of a bag, something plastic, handing it to him. "Look cousin, I am not having at you." he stared at it. And there it was, her address and birthdate and year. "Samhain, it has to be!" he exclaimed. She nodded. "Amongst other things, yes. Though I think the gods brought you specifically to me for a reason. There are some things that should change, for the Winthrops, and for Harry in there! None deserve the abuse that he goes through or that I have forseen for my child. Now we four have the power to change that!" she declared. "Abuse? Who would abuse Harry? Or your child?" Sirius was starting to become overwhelmed, as were the Potters. "So, penseive, yeah? It will show you all I know about Harry in there and all about me, then we will discuss what to do." Evie was showing wear so they all agreed. As soon as she set it up they all dove in. And were horrified at what they learned! "So it is true, your line does have the Sight. That child is my family! I will save your daughter, Evie!"

Meanwhile Lily was fuming. "I'll kill her James, I will rip her into little bits and burn her alive! She dare treat MY SON LIKE A SLAVE! Like, like he is a house elf?!" Evie cleared her throat, drawing attention back to herself. "In your original timeline, none of this has happened yet. We have the power, now, to change how the story plays. We can make sure that Emeri my daughter never knows rejection and abuse by no maj parents, and Harry never sees that Cupboard under the stairs. That everyone is more prepared for the threat of the terrorist piece of shit that wants to be Dictator of the Planet. And I have an idea as to how we do that." she said. "Right now, everyone believes that all the Potters are dead, no one has arrived to see Harry in the crib. I say, let them believe it. There is a logic to that. He won't have the weight of the world on his shoulders from day one. He can grow up without a looming threat over his life, the safety he needs to learn the magick he will need to end this once and for all! Let him grow up outside of Europe, where no one will recongnize him!" Sirius' eyes lit with the idea. "He can go to one of the American schools, until it is time to transfer, and staying out of manipulative hands! Of course! We should all pretend to be dead and stay here! But how does that help you, Evie?" he asked.

Evie left the room, and came back in with a toddler, a baby girl with the showings of the same dark brown hair and dark silver eyes. "This is my Emeri. You will take her with you, you will take this to my Head of House and he will set up everything for you including the blood adoptions. Harry will be away long enough that Hogwarts and the Headmaster will know nothing different by the time we need to show up for the Tri Wizard Tournament." Sirius nodded. "We owe her this! You saw what happened to her! She is my family and I can't allow that to happen to her or Harry if we can stop it! This can change everything, for all of us! Can you send us to the exact times we need to be?" he asked. "Can and will. But do you agree to this, Lily and James?" she asked. Lily took the sleeping girl into her arms, a smile already on her face. "What is her full name?" she asked. Sirius crawled over to get a better look at the child "Emeri Evelyn Winthrop" she answered. "We will raise her as though she is our own. It will be good for Harry to have a sibling!" Lily answered. "We owe you for bringing us back and saving him from so many terrible things so yes, we will raise Emeri. We are sorry for what is happening to you" Evie gave a sad smile as James answered in reference to her stage 4 cancer. "Good! Now go!" and there was another bright light and Sirius was staring at the Head of House Winthrop.


	3. What is done is done

**Chapter 3:** What is done is done

The Potters are still reeling in shock along with Sirius about everything that has happened. With the aid of the Head of House Winthrop, they take Emeri and Harry and all settle in Massachusetts. Meanwhile, back in England the Order tries to piece together what happened. Most choose to believe that the Potters all died in defeating Lord Voldemort.

 **James' POV**

He gazed with Lily in fondness while she rocked Harry to sleep. In the corner of his eye, he could see his best mate and his wee cousin Emeri fast asleep. It was a different world in America, he understood the appeal for the first time! It was truly beautiful, Boston still holding the same colonial charm that lured so many Britians before them to the New World. There was nothing to be heard about blood purity here! It was refreshing, and a whole new start for his son! Here, he would not have to face constant danger as soon as he showed up in the magickal world. Here, he could be just simply Harry, avoiding the stigma of being the Boy That Lived until he was trained and ready to take up the mantle. He and Sirius would be taking a personal approach in preparing him for that confrontation. Neither of them believed that the Dark Lord was entirely gone. This time all of them had more time! In the meanwhile, they will get to enjoy being a family, away from the madness in the UK. Enjoy not having a famous name. He smiled at that thought. Their new Patriarch gave them all new names. He and Lily were Charles and Lilah Winthrop, Harry became Harold, Sirius excited to finally be rid of the Black name became Atlas Winthrop.

He still did not know what quite to think of the whole situation. Evie could only show them what most American magicals knew at the time about what happened during her time line with his son and his friends. It was all terrible! It was the kind of shock that even long after the so call 2nd war, most of wizarding Britian had not yet recovered, and that haunted look, in his boy, who looked so much like him, and his poor friends! No, things would be very different this time. He decided that he very much liked being an American, and the new start away from so much death and destruction it provided for his family. They had already lost too much and now that he knew the truth about the phrase "the Greater Good" he would never utter it again! To know where Dumbledore had got that phrase… It sent shudders down his spine! Never again would he trust someone outside his inner circle! His best mate's cousin had the right of it! To hell with the Dark Lord, to hell with Dumbledore! He could never look at the man the same! He was no better than the Dark Lord, just as manipulative, using all of them as pawns in the chess game between the two of them, nothing more than cannon fodder! His son in the previous time line nothing more than a walking, talking weapon, a means to an end!

Well, now he would have the chance to just grow up! With a cousin/sister who would take one of the American schools by storm! They would both have the same care free youth that he and Sirius had, pulling pranks, making friends, learning about different magicks that even Hogwarts no longer taught. In the meanwhile he was actually excited about learning about the kind of magick that Evie weilded, that brought them back from death and saved all of them. Lily was more interested in warding and protection spells not for buildings, but on people. Afterall, in the original timeline, she had done something that provided a powerful ward against Voldemort, and it appears it was still there, as she did die. When she wasn't looking after the children she was digging in the Winthrop library. All of them loved the colonial home that their new House Head gave them! It was an actual, fully restored home from the time of the American Revolution, and had belonged to an ancestor. It was grand and yet humble in a way that many Manor homes failed to be back home. And the differences between Boston and London was stark and fascinating!

Here the magickal and muggle were not so seperated from one another! It was the same world for both muggle and magickal alike, weaved as layers, one on top of the other, interacting with each other at times. He and Lily were already planning a trip to Coney Island, as a chance to relax and to get supplies. There was also coming up the Family Dinner. Apparently it was a Winthrop thing that every Sunday one of the Winthrop homes would host a dinner for the whole family, a tradition that went back to the colonial days. They would be introduced as long lost British cousins who "finally came to their senses" to the rest of the extended family. And from the sound of it, it was a very large family! James wasn't much use to that! He only ever had his parents, and then the Marauders, then Lily and Harry. "Come to think of it, I actually do have some idea what it will be like." he thought to himself, disturbing Lily with a laugh. "Thinking about all the changes, aren't you Charles?" she said with a wink. They had all decided that to get use to their new identities they should start calling each other by them. James smirked. "I'm wondering why we didn't think to do this sooner, after Harold here was born, Lilah. Would of saved us alot of trouble, I think!" he stated.

"I have had that thought as well. The Dark Lord's arm may be long, but it has not the capability to reach here yet. I wonder why something was not set up here as soon as the prophecy was made! It makes far more sense! Why put the target directly under his nose! No wonder it was so easy for him in the first timeline! We all but drew a map and delivered ourselves to him wrapped in a bow! I do worry for the other boy, Neville. I hope Augusta will be able to take care and stay safe!" and that was one of the many reasons he fell so hard for her. Always putting others before herself. "I am hoping that she decides to do what we have. Britian is not the best place for our children to be right now. We should all face that Dark Wanker on OUR TIME, on OUR TERMS, not his, or the Order's! Those two boys got pushed into a war made by adults when they are only toddlers! They are supposed to get to be children Lils! To be safe, to learn, to prepare and grow so that when the time comes, if they DECIDE to fight, they will be ready too!" he ran a hand through his hair, fustrated and sickened. How could they not see how they were all being used? Everyone in that Order was being used. And while he agreed that the Dark Lord needed to be dealt with, coming to America put the threat into perspective for him in a way that he never thought of it before.

Evie had called the Dark Lord nothing more than a terrorist, who's reach could only go so far. And now he could see it! The numbers had never been on the side of the Dark! The truth was, there is simply more muggleborns than there were Purebloods! They outnumbered, and therefore, as Lils had said, outgunned them! Since coming to Boston, he was also learning to never underestimate the capability of muggles ever again! They had done things without magick that even the most powerful wizard would not dare to attempt! They sent a man to the moon! But the scariest of all, they had harnessed the power of the Atom! That thought still terrified him in all his dreams! There was no magickal defence against the Big Bomb! Their technology, their science continued to advance and reach new heights, while for the most part, in many places, the magickal world was stuck in the time of the Dark Ages. The most curious part of the Americas here was that they had found a harmony between technology and magick. Electricity ran, and ran without interruption throughout their new home. They had a tellie, electric lighting, a radio, they had three cars, which Lils would have to teach them how to drive!

"And now they will get that chance! Without Harry there, while regaining his power, the Dark Lord will not constantly be coming after them, as he thinks we are all dead! He always thought it was Harry, so he will have no reason to go after Frank and Alice's son, and he too will hopefully have the chance to be a child. I don't think we need to worry about the original timeline anymore. Only raising our dear Harold and Emeri and preparing them for what is to come. That way, like you said, they will be able to CHOOSE whether they want to fight or not. I imagine they will, but on THEIR terms! I think being here, in America, will teach them alot about refusing to be led around and making their own decisions." she replied. "That is very true. The Winthrops, for all the other things they are, are a Light Family, but they do not trust Dumbledore at all. They remembered what the UK was only to quick to forget. I hope that independent streak settles right down into the little ones." he gazed again at both Harry and Emeri. Originally, James had thought that he and Lils would raise Emeri. But over the last few days it became quite clear who was going to be her adoptive parent when Sirius was utterly enchanted by her and doing everything for her. "Between being the children of not one but TWO Marauders and growing up in the US they will be a handfull by the time it is time for us to go back to Britain and finish this, should they decide they want to." she replied.

They had discussed that as well. Now that they were out of the war, now that they had a new perspective on it, they decided whether or not Harry and Emeri decided to go back to fullfill the prophecy or not, to fight or not, would be their decision. There would be no Dumbledore here to lecture him about the so called Greater Good. And the truth was, it would be just as viable an option to destroy most of the Horocruxes and make the Dark Lord vulnerable enough to cage him in Azkaban as destroying him. The Runemauls showed them that anything was possible, including making a cage that even the Dark Lord couldn't crawl out of! The fact that he actually shred his soul to make the cursed items actually made it that much easier to cage him, the man himself had already made the sacrifices that could be used against him. Such beautiful irony. "That's fair enough. I suppose we shall have to get use to being Americans, and being out of the conflict. It feels so strange. We should by all rights be dead. Instead we get a second chance and instead of flying back to Dumbledore, we decided not to hide, but walk away. I can't say I am still happy about that, but knowing what we know, we have to prepare them! I guess we all never had the choice to join the fight or not, and now that we do, it's hard to turn my back on our friends." he voiced the guilt he had been feeling.

Lils sighed. "I know, I know. But they also have 10 years of peace, remember that! For now, everything is on hiatus. Our friends will be safe for the time being. I refuse to feel guilty knowing what I do now! And now we have a new start, I think it is best that we start thinking about what we want to do with ourselves. I am not the stay-at-home type dear!" and so they circled back to the conversation they had with Max Winthrop, their new Head. "Still thinking about opening your own Potions shop?" he asked. She had more than enough finacial backing to pull it off, and she was very excited about the idea. "I am indeed. There are so many potential customers here, and I could do so much good that way! You know how I always enjoyed Potions!" he smiled at that. "That I do. I am still at a loss though. I always thought I and Sirius would be Aurors but now that we have seen horror, I am not sure what I would like to do anymore." he said sheepishly. "You and Sirius always had more talents than just Defense Against the Dark Arts! You are a Marauder! Surely you two can put your thick skulls together and come up with something!" she said, eyeballing him. He nervously scratched the back of his head. "Well, we both have always been tolerable artists…..maybe we could design advertisements?" it was an idea that had been growing in his mind. After all, somebody had to come up with them, and between the two, they could make something incredibly eye catching!

"Well there you are then love! Ask around, see who hires for designing advertisements in Boston, show them what you and Sirius can do!" she said. "Now, in the meantime, I am exhausted so I think its time we put our Harold to bed!" she said with a smile. He gave her a small one back. "Right you are love." and he took his son from her arms and took him back to his crib. He gently shook Sirius' shoulder. "Hey, Atlas, time put the little one to bed." after making a grunting noise he slowly woke up. He put Harold to bed and turned around to see Sirius kiss the little girl's forehead. "Goodnight Little Blackbird." causing him to smile. Finally, a girl had stolen the notorious playboy Sirius Black's heart. As they left the room James clapped his hand on his back. "This is truly a new start, the world we wanted! So now that the world is our oyster, how about we introduce these Americans to the Marauders?!" they both shared a wicked smile, each with a gleam in their eye that could only mean one thing, trouble! "Well Prongs, that sounds like a plan to me!" and as he went off to bed he couldn't help but feel a sense of relief and contentment he had not felt in a very, VERY long time. They had gotten one over on the Dark Lord! They had won the battle! In time, perhaps, they would see who won the war.

 **Lily's POV**

She listened with a small smile, and a small amount of concern while Sirius and James bantered as they made their way to bed. She owed Sirius a life debt! Because of him neither her son or his little cousin would ever know want. Because of him, they were alive and well, getting the chance to start the kind of lives that they chose, instead of waiting for death on every corner, living life on the run. She could have never predicted this while they were hiding away, never knowing when they would be found. It would have been truly awful, even if Peter had not betrayed them all, to spend the rest of their lives under the Fedelius charm! She was going to make the most of this new opportunity! And she was going to make sure that they did the same, even if she had to drag them into said opportunities kicking and screaming.

 **Albus Dumbledore's POV**

Albus Dumbledore was not sure what to think when he got to the Potter Safe House. When he saw there had been an attack, he expected bodies, not ashes on the floor! But it appeared they had done what it had been said was impossible! Because next to those ashes was a wand that could only belong to one Tom Riddle, and on top of those ashes black robes. All he could think of is that the Potters had used unknown magick to vanquish the darkest wizard since Gridenwald. However, inspite of the evidence in front of him, he did not feel that they were dead. It was being said that there was no trace of Sirius Black either, which for him only confirmed it. However, every time he tried to reach them, it was like none of them even existed anymore! Strange, very strange it all seemed to him. A mystery, and in this time of war, he didn't like for there to be a mystery! In a short time, other Order members, including Remus Lupin arrived to the home were the Potters had been hiding since that prophecy had been uttered. It was he who showed up in a panic. "But what could have happened? If it is true, and the Dark Lord is gone, what happened to Lily and James? And where is Peter and Sirius? There has been no trace of them either! I don't understand!" the werewolf stated. The sandy haired man was deeply worried, and Dumbledore was at a loss as to what he could even tell him. He could feel old magick in the air, of a kind he had not felt since his youth. But he could not put a finger on it.

More pops were heard as Alastor Moody and Minerva showed up as well. All of them took in the scene sadly. "I think it is very clear what has happened here. The Potters and Mr. Black had to have done something here. Something in desperation as the wards were being dismantled. Maybe they had prior warning. But whatever they did, they took down the Dark Lord, more than likely at the cost of their own lives to do it. Poor Harry must have got caught into the magick too. Perhaps this is what the prophecy was saying would happen. After all it did mention the boy would defeat him with a power he knows not." the clear headed head of Grypphindor stated. It was a cold take in of all the facts, the very few clues left them that had the logical, no nonsense woman come to that conclusion and if any looked closely enough they would have seen tears in her eyes. Alastor looked at him very closely, clearly he thought that was not the whole case either. But nothing showed that the Potters or Mr. Black were still alive. It appeared they had won, in the end. But at what cost, he doubted even he could have calculated. Remus was shaking his head. "No, I don't believe it! I don't believe they are gone! There are no bodies! I know of no magick that would not leave at least a body!" he exclaimed. Unfortunately, Dumbledore did, but kept silent on the matter.

It was Minerva who put her hand on the werewolf's shoulder. "I am sorry Remus, but there is no other explanation! We can all take heart that they were brave to the very end, and that good triumphed, and because of them, we all can live in a world free of fear! Because of them, we may all have faith again, and we will always honor their heroism!" she said. "No, I'm sorry, but no one can know what happened here. Not entirely. There are still Death Eaters out there, which means that the young Longbottom heir and muggleborns are still at risk. No, there are still things to do. Until we can change the hearts of the young and round up the few that would still bring terror upon our world, what happened here tonight must remain amongst us. All they need know is that the Dark Lord is gone. And I am afraid that Albus and I will need your Vows not to reveal what you have seen here tonight." Alastor spoke up. Dumbledore nodded sadly. He was of course right. Dumbledore knew deep down that the Dark Lord was not entirely gone. And there were to many questions about what happened here to let out into the open. He wanted to study further, see what kind of magick could have caused this. And the old magick that he felt here, it was not the kind that would have killed the Potters or Sirius Black, it was not harmful or dark. And so he got vows from everyone not to reveal what they had seen.

All the wizarding world needed to know was that the Dark Lord had been defeated. Until he knew more, they would not learn anything else.


	4. A Family Affair

**Chapter 4:** A Family Affair

Sirius, James, and Lily take Emeri and Harry to meet their new family at Max Winthrop's Sunday dinner, where they learn a great deal about magickal Boston and family roots in the New World. (Part 1): Anna Lee Winthrop talk about many things, including Dumbledore, the Dark Lord, the War, and the children's education.

*I do not own Harry Potter. I do however own Evelyn, Emeri, Max, Anna Lee, Gaius, Matthus, Judith, and Rosa Winthrop.*

 **Lily's POV**

The week had gone by fast for the 5 of them, getting adjusted to their new home. At first, Lily, now Lilah, had been charmed by the beautiful colonial home. But as the days went by she became more and more fond of it, the sounds, creeks, and shifts reminded her of Hogwarts in a way. She had come upon a least a couple of ghosts since coming here, and had been so fascinated that she began studying the history of the town, and what led to the Revolution in the first place. Even dear Pads seemed absolutely fascinated, becoming apart of the very town another branch of his own family had established. She could not imagine the relief he must have felt, meeting apart of his bloodline that were not like his nightmare of a family back in Britain! All of them looked forward to exploring all the layers to the old city, muggle and magickal alike! And there was a side benefit that gave her a sense of relief. How in tune with muggles, and the muggle world, the magickals were here! It wasn't like how it was in England! Where the culture shock of leaving technology behind had hit her so hard, inspite of how much she loved her school.

Their house ran off electricity, just like the one she grew up in! They had a tellie, an electric stove, light bulbs, vacuums, and for the love of Merlin, refridgerators! Heating and cooling wired in the home. She could never make Sirius or James understand how much she had missed these things! And now a car! The joy of actually taking a journey each time you get behind a wheel. It reminded her of a favorite quote of hers from Fellowship of the Ring, "Its a dangerous business Frodo, going out your front door. You step out onto the road and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to." she still made it a personal goal to get Prongs and Pads to read those books. Now they would have the chance to also get swept up into an adventure, like she use to as a child. That made her think, think of Severus. She shook her head. "No, I can't go there, not now! There is nothing I can do for him!" she thought to herself. Regardless of what he thought, she understood, even at the time, what he had been doing. She knew even as he called her mudblood, that in his own way, he was trying to protect her. He could never know that he actually did.

She also thought about her other, first friend at Hogwarts. Her mind turned to Remus Lupin a lot. It broke her heart that there was no token she could send, anything, to relieve the pain and the grief he must be in at the thought that he had lost everyone that he ever cared for. James and Sirius never spoke about it, but you could see it in their faces. There was nothing that could be done now. But she hoped, sometime, in the future, she could let him know that they were alive! She wiped her tears away. What was done now was done. And now, she had a family dinner to prepare for and just a day to prepare for it. When Max came to visit he called it a potluck. Where everyone had to bring a dish. As Americans did not use house elves, all of them thankfully knew how to cook. And she had been racking her brain on what to bring. A bit of inspiration came from the welcoming neighbors who had been supplying them with many goodies. Boston Cream Pie seemed relatively easy enough. She looked forward to actually going to an American grocery market for the first time. She had always wanted to go to America someday! Just as she was thinking these thoughts the sound of running feet and giggles could be heard. She laughed herself as Pads in his animagus form was chasing around Harry and Emmie (*side note, Emeri's nickname). The two toddlers had taken to one another, to the point that often they would call for each other when being put to bed.

"Get him Haar!" called out the little girl. "Shhhhhh he'll hear ussss Emm!" replied her little boy. She saw how Padfoot rolled his eyes. She laughed to herself while she started to make a list of the things that should would need for the pie. It felt good, for this to be her biggest concern, for her worries to be about meeting her new family, instead of about when the Dark Lord would come for them all. It felt right, normal, just what she had been missing the last few years since they were all thrown into this fight. After all that they had been through, even James and Sirius seemed to be thriving on normal, or as normal as an all out prank war between the two of them could be. She learned long ago to be nuetral, though that did not guarentee that she would not still get caught in the middle at some point. She wondered how Max would handle it, for as sure as she was standing there would be pranks upon Pads distant family members. She almost felt sorry for them, though she had a feeling that the Patriarch could give as good as he got. He had that special gleam in his eye after all! More noise as the toddlers continued to chase Pads all over the house, his joyous barking making Lily laugh. She was half in love with this new normal, this peaceful dynamic! She only wished that she and James had thought to leave the war behind long before now.

***1 day later***

Things were now hetic around the house. Lily was taking out the pie while Sirius chased Emmie all over the house in order to get the girl to wear shoes. James was chasing down Harry trying to get him to wear dress clothes. "Alright, everyone hurry up, or we are going to be late!" she yelled up the stairs, wearing a smirk. "You try some toddler wrangling Lils!" came the fustrated sound of Sirius' voice. She heaved a sigh. "Emmie! Want to see your Aunt Lils?" she said in a cheery tone. "Lils!" the girl gleefully shouted, running into the kitchen and plowing into her legs. Thankfully she held steady. "Sweet girl, you need to wear your shoes, or the gnomes will get your toes!" she said very seriously. Emmie looked up at her, eyes huge with concern. "They wiiilll?" she said. "You better hurry!" she replied. Emmie gulped and ran back to Sirius, who now took a seat at the dining table. He shot a smirk over the little girls head. "Thanks, Lils." he said while pulling the girl in his lap and putting on her shoes. "You have to have the touch." she said knowingly. Footsteps on the stairs indicated that James had gotten Harry ready as well. "Alright, its cold out so everyone get your coats on!" she said. She grabbed both of her pies to put in the trunk while the boys put coats on the children. She opened the door and breathed in the brisk, New England air. She loved the Fall here, everything was so lush and rich with color. She got the boot open and put in the pies.

She was still grateful about the car seats, though teaching Prongs and Pads how to buckle up the children had been a chore and a half! Took nearly a day before they were able to get the hang of it! After they were buckled Sirius went into his animagus form so as to make sure there was room in the back for him with the children and James took the passengar seat. And off they went, driving through the city. She found herself excited, heading towards the famous Beacon Hill district. As they got closer not only the homes but even the buildings with flats had a charm to them, a sense of design and history. They were heading to the home of Gaius and Anna Lee Winthrop, Max's son and his wife. They had children, the older 5 year old Mathus and the younger twins Judith and Rosa, the same age as Harry and Emmie. It warmed her heart to know that her boy would grow up not only with Emmie but with other children his age as well, so starkly different from his horrid upbringing in the other timeline. So bad was his treatment in the other timeline that she was more than happy to let Petunia and her cursed husband believe them all dead. But she could not let those bitter thoughts continue as they got closer to their location. She began to hope that her pies would go over well, they were a staple in this new town of theirs, and so taken very seriously!

It reminded her of Butterbeer in England. They reached the famed Acorn St, it's unique look reminding her of a different time, a perfect blend of the past and the present. She could not help but marvel how in such close quarters no one would notice that there was magick being used. They parked off street, opening the doors and Lily helping get the children out of their car seats. As soon as they reached the door they were greeted by two of the most gracious looking people! The man reminded him so much of their savior Evie, with the same dark brown hair and dark silver eyes. He was of medium build, hair short but wavy. He had a square jaw and a squareness to his shoulders that spoke of physical strength. However, unlike so many other purebloods she had known, the silver eyes spoke of mirth and micheviousness that seemed to match Sirius! Next to him was a striking redhead, hair darker than what she was use to, with eyes a golden green, light and happy. She was petite with a fire behind those eyes that told Lily that they would get along very well! "Come on in! Welcome! Welcome! I am Anna Lee, and that annoying man is Gaius!" the other redhead exclaimed in such a way that she actually reminded her alot of Molly Prewett. "And these must be the children!" she knelt down once in the door way. "Hello, you must be the big boy I was told all about! You look like a Hank to me!" Harry looked at her with big eyes.

"But I'm Harry!" he protested. Anna Lee laughed. "Oh I know that sweetheart. But nicknames show our love for one another! You should make one up for me too!" their banter had Lily smiling. Her son concentrated, looking at the other woman, deep in thought. "Kitty, cause you have kitty eyes!" he said solemnly. Emmie clapped her hands, pout ending in that moment with a smile. "Kitty Cat Aunt!" both James and Sirius laughed. "Perfect, and who is this lovely young lady?" Emmie blushed, but bold as any Grypphindor walked up and hugged Anna Lee. Not to be out done Harry followed suit. Gaius was looking down fondly. "Now Hank, and you dear little Princess, have some folks really eager to meet you!" and if on cue, another child's voice ringed out. "Can we come out now!" a head poked out, another dark haired brunette with dark silver eyes and cherubic face. She heard Sirius gasp behind her, a whispered "Regulus" fell from his lips, breaking her heart for her friend. "Come on out and meet your cousins Mathus, bring the twins!" Gaius replied in a happy tone. Slowly they came down the stairs, the young Mathus holding on to the hands of his siblings. She couldn't help but smile at the little darlings. The young boy had on an outfit identical to his father's.

As they came down the stairs Anna Lee grabbed the pies. "Let me get those for you and get them in the fridge! You must be Lilah! Wonderful to meet you!" she said. Lily turned her smile towards the other woman. "Yes, thank you so much!" she replied, happy to have her hands free. She gazed down for a brief moment to take in the twin Winthrop girls. The similarities between them and Emmie were immediate. Same dark hair, though the twins had more of a chestnut shade with hints of copper, obviously from their mother. Their eyes were the same as their brother's but they were of a petite, birdlike build, much like Anna Lee. Their eyes were large, and they looked at Emmie and Harry with fascination. Like Anna Lee before her, Lily knelt down to meet them. "Hello little darlings, I'm your Aunt Lilah." she said with a smile. Mathus approached her with all the solemn calm of a 30 year old man. "Mathus, but call me Mattie, everyone does. It's nice to meet you." and like the adorable little gentleman he was he took her hand and kissed it with a spark to his eye that reminded her so much of the Black brothers it was almost frightening. "Judy!" squeeled one of the twins that tackle hugged her. The only difference between her and the other twin, who she knew now as Rosa was the boldness of Judith and the shyness of Rosa.

She adored them already, thinking she would deeply enjoy being an Aunt again, like Petunia would never allow her to be. "Well, come on then! In we go, lets see about getting you all some drinks. Mattie, why don't you take your cousins into the playroom?" said Gaius. The little boy nodded. "Come on guys, the adults want to TALK!" he said with a snort, causing Sirius to break out into laughter and James to crack a smile. The children left while they were led to an actual living room, making her feel more at home than a pureblood sitting room, though she imagined there might be one at the Patriarch's home. "Anyone want a beer, whiskey, wine, scotch?" Gaius asked. James looked at the man like he was the Second Coming. "I have to go check on the food but I'll have a Scotch dear, as always!" Anna Lee said kissing his cheek. "If you don't mind I'll come with you and help, and maybe some Sweet Red, if you have it?" she responded. It was always a favorite of hers outside of school, one of the very few things her and Petunia still had in common. "Oh absolutely. I'll bring it in a moment." the man replied. Anna Lee smiled. "Oh thank you, I would be happy to have the help!" she said with a wink. She gave James a smile while Sirius asked for whiskey. "You know, I think I'll take a cue from Annie there and have a Scotch." she rolled her eyes, apparently James took the nickname talk Anna Lee had with the children to heart.

She came and grabbed Lily by the elbow. "Lets get away from the men, quick before they con more time out of us!" she said with a wink. Lily smiled at her and followed into a gloriously large kitchen with all the appliances she knew from her youth. How refreshing to see a pure-blood family do things the muggle way! Nothing was cooked magically, no house-elves popping in and out. Things were done by hand and there was a humbleness in that she felt that James and Sirius would never really understand. She admired the granite countertops so like the ones in their own home, the island, over which hung stainless steele pots and pans as well as various glasses. The stove was built into the wall, large and inviting looking. Lobster was boiling in a large pot, as well as the incredible smell of what could be only one delicous soup, New England Clam Chowder. Muscles were cooling and in the stove she could see freshly peeled corn on the cob baking in tin foil. "We figured to introduce you all to Boston in the best of ways. And now that we are alone we can talk. Max told us everything. All of us adults know who you really are, and what happened." she spoke, taking on a more serious tone. Lily let out a breath she did not even know she had been holding. "You have no idea how grateful we all are, for everything your family has given us! You are nothing like your Black cousins." Lily replied.

"We do things different here in the states. It looks like you all could have used a look at the bigger picture. Sirius was family, so of course we would step in if asked for help. But, by and large Lily, this is not our fight. And I don't think it was yours either. This is Albus Dumbledore and Tom Riddle's own personal little fued, and it is damn sad that they are throwing in others into their battle of wills. I understand the ideology you fight against, but do you acutally think the so called Dark Lord even really believes in it?" she asked. It was something she had wondered herself for a long time. Especially knowing now that the Dark Lord was really Tom Riddle, who was a half-blood himself. "No, I don't. This is about domination and power for him. I think it has alot to do with being powerless as a child and never wanting to be that way again, to morphing into something different and darker. The fact the child was never shown any real kindness that did not have a motive behind it warped him. It would warp any young child, especially one that grew up during the Great War. A child surrounded by so much darkness, left to fend for himself is bound to have issues that come up. It does not excuse what he has become, but I understand it. I wonder what would have happened, if just one person tried being a friend to a scared little boy." she remembered all of that from Evie's memories, and some of what she learned from the Otherside.

"Fair enough. But you know that had things gone like they could have, your son would have been turned into a weapon without a choice. And it would have started as soon as he is 11 years old. He would have never had a childhood at all, constantly under threat, with several attempts on his life under his belt. A 11 year old has no business in a war! My advice? Let those who actually started all this finish it. Dumbledore knows alot more than what he lets on. If you must tell him what you know of Tom Riddle. But keep the children out of it!" she said. "I do think knowing now what I know about the Dark Lord that the prophecy was utter rubbish, the only reason it has to be Harry is because that bastard turned my son into one of those cursed things. You all have showed me that there is more than one way to use magick, and I intend on finding the way to remove that portion of soul from my son, that way no one can turn him into a damned martyr!" Lily slammed her fist down on the counter of the island. Anna Lee smiled knowingly. "That is exactly what should be done! There is always a way, for those with the discipline to learn and to seek it. There was a reason we left the Old World all those centuries ago. There is so much more to magick than waving a wand and speaking Latin, you would think the Blacks and other so called "pureblood" families would know that! I am damn sure that the so called Dark Lord does!" she said.

That put a chill down Lily's spine to think about. "I won't send Emmie and Harry out to the slaughter, they are just children. But when they are of age, if they decide to fight, I will not stop them either. Emeri may be a Winthrop, but by rights she is also a Black, and now Sirius' daughter and has a right to be apart of the world of her ancestors and fight for it, and Harry was thrown into this, it is true, and this fight has already cost him so much. If he decides to fight as we did, when he is of age, he will. But I will not send them in blind! I know what the Dark Lord is capeable of, I've seen it with my own eyes! I am going to make sure they learn everything they can about magick, so that they will both be a force to be reckoned with should they ever meet him on the battlefield one day." she voiced what she had been thinking on for the last few days. "All of us Winthrops have a tutor for the children from age 5 and all throughout their school years. They teach them our ancestrial magick, as well as Norse, Celtic, Greek, Shamanic and Shinto magick as well. In fact tomorrow, I and Gaius are taking Mattie to get his first athame. It is the only thing a Winthrop casts with, and I suggest the same for Emeri and Harry, even for you three to learn yourselves." Anna Lee stated.

"I've wondered how it is different from a wand." Lily voiced. "It is not as restrictive as a wand. As much as a wand acts as a conduit, it also blocks excess power, closing off to full usage. An athame is not a conduit, it is a focusing point. It does not hold your power back, it stores some each time that you use it. Through the years you can call on that storage when you feel depleted, which is damn handy, I can tell you that! You can use it like a wand, but you can also use it to cast seals, to use runes, to create sacred space and draw on for ritual spells like you saw one of us do already. Think of it this way, your wand is like a flashlight, and an athame is a part of your arm. There is also another fact, no one can use your blade for magick but you, even should someone defeat you. Each blade only has one master." Anna Lee explained. It was all very interesting, and she thought to herself that it was more than likely that she would be sitting in on these tutoring sessions, already knowing that she would be having Harry and Emeri tutored in the same manner. "And Max has already arranged for them to be tutored just like my own children when they turn 5." Anna Lee smirked. "Am I really that easy to read?" Lily said aloud, sighing. "It would be what I would be thinking, were I in your position, so no worries. Now look, here's our drinks! Lets talk about some lighter matters!" she said.


	5. Becoming Bostonian

**Chapter 5:** Becoming Bostonian (Meal Part 2)

Sirius and James talk to Gaius about plans for the children in the future. Max, Eugenia, William and Marah Winthrop arrive, captivating Sirius and the Potters with the family history and tales of magickal Boston.

*authors note* My version of the magickal US differs dramaticly from JK Rowling's version. I wanted to show a stark contrast between Britain and the US during this time because a lot of the reason Voldemort rose to power was due to the Dark Ages fuedal structure of the magickal world there and the pureblood families aka aristocracy being against change for the same reasons their medieval counterparts were. Whence the embrace of no mag technology, science, and medicine comes from in the States who threw off the aristocracy of the Old World both muggle and magickal.

WARNING: This chapter will be long, as it is vital to establish the lives the Potters and Sirius will be leading in Boston so please read through and bare with it. This info will be important throughout the story.

I do not own Harry Potter. I do own Emeri, Max, Eugenia, Evelyn, Gaius, Anna Lee, William, Nadia, Daniel, Judith, Rosa, and Eudora Winthrop.

 **Sirius' POV**

Sirius was still reeling from shock at the appearance of Matthus Winthrop. His resemblance to his brother Regulus at that age was so striking it knocked the wind out of him! His distant family were so different from his own! There were no House Elves here, no using magick even to cook! Everything here was done by hand or by electricity, something he was still having trouble wrapping his mind around. All of them seemed to have this humility to them, even though like him they were also pureblood, wealthy, and powerful. There was genuine warmth between parent and child in this household, genuine love between his cousin Gaius and Anna Lee, much like with James' parents. There was warmth here, and he was wrapping himself up in it, wishing that he could have been born into this branch of the family. And then there was Boston herself, a city of colonial beauty and charm, a testament to the perfect balance of wealth and simplicity. He also looked forward to exploring the shops and haunts of the magickal side of what to his eternal amusement was nicknamed Bean Town. He followed James and Gaius as he led them towards what he called the living room, seeing there another tellie and soft, expensive looking furniture. An expensive Asian rug was found underneath a stone and glass coffee table.

There was a gorgeous oak cabinant with what looked like strange carvings into the wood, sitting on top was two tumblrs and three glasses. Gaius poured whisky for Sirius, and Scotch for James. Bidding them sit, he made off for his cellar to get Lils her Sweet Red. The two best mates regarded each other a moment. "I sort of feel like we've been called to the Headmaster's office." James said, looking a bit nervous, not like the other man would ever actually admit to it. "If getting called to the Headmaster's comes with whiskey, I'm ready to be sent everyday Prongs!" Sirius replied jovially. It wasn't much longer before Gaius rejoined us. "Now I am sure my wife is letting Lilah in there know that we know everything. You will find that there are no secrets in this family, but we do keep each other's secrets. We know how you got here, that Sirius here is our Black cousin, and we know even more about what is going on in England right now and the prophecy about Hank." both Sirius and James let out a breath. "Well, thats an opener if I ever heard one." James said. Gaius smirked at us. "I know how deeply you two have been involved in this thing, and I am hoping, having been away from it, you have gotten a little perspective on the whole situation. We here in the states do not feel threatened by the so called Dark Lord, not even a little bit. At most, he is a skilled terrorist." he stated.

Not much of a surprise to Sirius. The Dark Lord's reach had never extended to the United States. His grip was the strongest in England, Scotland, and Ireland, with a small foothold in Russia. And even there the resistance had been growing in strength. "I see that you are thinking about my point. Good! Now to us, this seems to be nothing more than a pissing contest between rivals, with innocents being caught in the crossfire. Not to mention the best of your youth being thrown in, pawns between two master chess players. If Dumbledore truly wanted the Potters safe, why did he not seek asylum for them in a place that is free from the conflict? America, France, Japan even? Places that are free from any of the Dark Lord's minions? Why keep them in a place that he has such a strong presense? Does that really make sense to either of you?" he asked them both. These were not questions that he had not been asking himself over the past week or so. Keeping the Potters so close when Dumbledore knew the Dark Lord was hunting them now seemed the height of folly. It was only a matter of time before he found out where they were, there was always a way of finding such things out, Fedelius charm or not.

"What is the point behind these questions? I know you mean no offence, but what is the point?" he asked him. "The point is, Hank in there deserves better than to be thrown into the war path of a megolomaniac and turned into a weapon! He is only 3 years old! And even if the Dark Lord is gone for a short time, his followers sure as Hell are not. And if you think they would not come back for revenge, you are sadly mistaken! This is not a fight of his making, or yours, and quite frankly I believe the fight should be left between those who actually started it. You have a safe place here, where the children can learn and grow without being under the constant threat of that man or the manipulative Headmaster. They can learn here things they would never have been taught at Hogwarts. Pick up and move on with your lives, and should the day come, if either of them wish to fight, you make damn sure that they are trained and ready for it. I know you have friends that have been drug in the middle of this, and for that I am truly sorry. I hope that they find a way out as you have. But you got to build a life here, and yes, you should not, in any way, reach out to anyone in your former life. Doing that will put yourselves and everything you are trying to achieve here at risk." he stated. "I do think that when you are in the middle of something, it seems bigger than it actually is. However, we in the Black family KNOW the Dark Lord. He may be a terrorist now, but you would be a fool to underestimate what he is capeable of. We do need to deal with him, once and for all. So yes, we will keep quiet." he said.

He continued "However, I do know now that this is not over, as much as I wish it was so. And you are right, the children must be trained in every way possible for when the time comes." he finished. "I am glad you are willing to remove yourselves for this, even if it is only for a time. We understand he is only an irritant now, so was Adolf Hitler, and I believe we all know how that ended!" Gaius replied, both men sharing a bitter smile. "Now my wife in there is explaining how we Winthrops handle our children's education, and you now as Winthrops will more than likely do the same. They will learn magick that few know about in your part of the world, with even fewer practictioners. They will have every magick and weapon at their disposal, no different from my own children, Max will see to that. So now that we got that out of the way, lets talk about where you found yourselves! I have yet to welcome you to our humble Bean Town!" the look on his face changed entirely, and there was a pride there in Gaius' eyes that could not be mistaken. Inspite of where his thoughts were, he was intrigued to learn about the magickal side of this city he had come to find himself in. Even James leaned forward in interest. "Now Max is the sage of our family, and no doubt he will tell you the entire history, but I am sure you have already noticed the differences between England and Boston in how no mags and witches and wizards co-exist, correct?' he asked.

James spoke up. "I actually find that to be quite fascinating. Here you seemed to have bridged the gap between muggle technology and magick. How is that possible? Everything I have heard says that magick and electricity do not go together." he said. "Well let me ask you a question Charles. Lightning strikes the ground just fine on Hogwarts grounds as well as muggle London, correct?" now this was getting interesting! "Of course, that's only natural!" he stated. "Electricity is just so, it is a part of nature. Now in most no mag homes, electricity is powered by a powerplant that often uses natural resources like coal. We actually took our model from the no mag designs of the battery. There are places, all over the globe, where electricity occurs naturally, and constantly. Also, we know that crystals also store and hold energy. Now I don't know the specifics, but there are crystals throughout the United States, embued with magick, that store that natural power source and runes that transfer that power into the same type of wiring as no mag wiring. So there is no interference, and our house is lit and ran no different from theirs." he answered. It was actually a huge achievement in intregrating magic and muggle technology, Sirius was deeply impressed.

"I imagine that soon you will start exploring the magick part of our city. Now unlike Europe, it is not a seperate world between no mags and us. Think of it more like lasagna or multiple plains existing together in the same place, all at once. They interact without touching each other, or seeing each other most of the time. We do have a few wizarding towns here and there, but mostly we live amongst the no mags. Ourselves, we don't want our children to ONLY rely on their magick, so when we send them to school, during the summer breaks we make sure that they get caught up on their muggle schooling for that year as well. It is not a good thing to leave such a disadvantage to only introduce them to the magickal world. It is important that they embrace all of the world around them, and know what is going on around them as well. Whether the older families like it or not, what happens in the no mag world DOES effect us. But I drift off." Gaius took a sip from his own drink. It made sense to Sirius. Especially since learning of the creation by muggles of the Atomic bomb and then the build up of what was now the Nuclear Age! Magick may be powerful, but muggles had done something no wizard had ever attempted before, the splitting of the atom, the harnessing of it's power! They could destroy the whole world, magickal and non magickal alike, and there would really be nothing the magickal world could actually do to stop it once those rockets were in the air! It was incredibly humbling to think about. It was dangerous to underestimate them, thinking they had no power, just because they did not possess magick!

There was a knock at the door, which had all of them setting down their glasses, the voice of Anna Lee already drifting towards him. As they made their way to the front door in walked Max, and if his guess was correct, his wife Eugenia. The couple were an quite attractive older couple in their 50's, Max with the family trademark dark brown hair and dark silver eyes, strongly built in the shoulders, hints of physical strength. Eugenia was a vision, with silver and auburn peppered long hair, half pulled back in a berette and the rest left to fall down in long waves around her shoulders with bright glaciel blue eyes and the same hour glass figure as Evie had, but also very tall, at least 2 inches taller than her husband. Lily was right next to Anna Lee at the door. Her manner around Anna Lee was now easy. "Dad!" Gaius exclaimed giving the older man a hug. Lily reached out a hand towards the older woman. "And you must be Lilah, hello, my name is Eugenia, but you can call me Geanie, everyone does!" and she embraced Lils in a tight hug like they had known one another for years. There was a shocked look on the redheads face as she was embraced that caused him to crack a smirk. Watching this family, Sirius felt more than content becoming a Winthrop! This was how a family was supposed to be! "Hoped you cooked for a small army, Will, Nadia, and the kids are coming right behind us!" Max called out. It appeared that the Winthrops rivaled the famed Weasleys in sheer size! The thought made Sirius chuckle. As if on cue, a loud knock came to the door, with Geanie reaching behind her to open it.

"Come in Dumb Ass!" Gaius called jovially. Geanie paused to wack him in the back of the head. "Seriously Gaius Marcus?!" she scolded. Sirius had to bite down on the urge to say "No, I'm Sirius." His cousin just smiled at her. They all moved out of the way to show William and Nadia Winthrop. William had the features of the rest of his family, and Nadia, platinum blonde hair that would make a Malfoy jealous with dark blue eyes, a wicked smile, and medium frame. He heard the sound of feet heading their way, as he heard Mattie call out "Come on Danny! You too Dora!" and so William and Nadia's daughter rushed in, knocking into the adults and causing them all to crack grins of amusement. "Not so fast, we must not be rude my little rascals!" the amused Nadia grabed gently on their arms, causing them to halt in mid run. "But mom! I want to go play with Mattie!" claimed the boy called Danny. Meanwhile, the girl named Dora, who in a way reminded him of his own, Black cousin, looked curiously at Harry and Emeri. William chuckled. "This bold one here is Daniel, and my sweet little princess here is our Eudora. Be nice and hug your grandma and grandpa and aunts and uncles!" William told the children. Eudora actually shocked them and hugged Sirius first! "Hi Uncle Atlas!" the girl smiled and melted him into a pile of goo. The girl looked but a year older than Emeri, whereas Daniel looked to be the oldest out of the children. Sirius returned the embrace. "Hello little bird, its nice to meet you!" he smiled. She blushed prettily. The little girl moved on to hug Lils and then James.

Nadia walked up and greeted him next with a one armed hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Welcome to the family, Grypphindor!" she said with a smirk. She looked as though she was proud of him for that, one of the first in his family that actually was. Next was William who gave him a firm hand shake and then Daniel who did the same, imitating his father. "Alright, looks like we are all here! Why don't we all go to the living room? Son would mind a glass of whiskey and some Scotch here for your mother?" Max said. "Come on guys, its story time!" Mattie said, excited while he lead the children into the living room, being a little gentleman by taking the twins Judy and Rosa by the hand. It almost reminded him of heading to class at Hogwarts, following the others back into the living room while he took back his spot next to his whiskey. Looking over, he saw the eager look in Lils eyes at learning something new, while James had more of a semi-interested look. He had never been big on family history, anymore than Sirius had. However he was very curious about this side of the family. His mother had told him and Regulus next to nothing about them, probably because she knew next to nothing about them. While the kids got situated Anna Lee and Eudora left to go fix some hot chocolate. While waiting on them, Max turned to the three of them. "Anymore thoughts on what you wish to do here?" he asked. Lily smiled. "I have decided to open that potions shop, it is just to tempting to pass up, and a wonderful way to still have time for the children as well!" he smiled at her enthusiasm.

He was happy for her. It was a dream of hers to be her own boss, and potions had always been a passion of hers. "Well cousin, I and James have been talking. For a brief moment we thought about going into advertising but the truth is, both of us were looking to be Aurors in England. I've heard that you, William, have a private security buisness here?" he looked over to the man. It was actually rather genius, something he would have never heard of in England. They all trusted in wards so much, whereas here they always preferred to err on the side of caution for the VIPs of the country. It was a way for he and James to put their skills into use, on a less threatening scale, and the pay was more than adequate! "I do indeed, and the thought has crossed my mind to recruit you and Charlie here. Sounds like you are interested?" there was a calculating gleam in his eyes that showed his relation to the Blacks, he could see it poking through here and there. James perked up. "We both are. We are both well trained, are exceptional with blending into crowd, and to be honest, it sounds like the type of work that would be best suited to the two of us." his best mate stated. "Both of you, please call me Will, only my clients call me William." he replied. "I will be happy to arrange a meeting so that we can assess your skills and interview you. It simply would not due to just give you the position, but I don't imagine that we will have any issues with you two making the cut." he finished with a smile. Max gave both him and James an secretive grin and Sirius let out a sigh of relief. He would have been eternally bored to do nothing all day!

Not long after that was settled, Nadia and Anna Lee started to bring in Hot Chocolate for the children, giving the toddlers the drink in special non spilling cups. It was now time for Max to take central stage. "Alright, gather around folks, it is time to give our British cousins a run of the family history!" his voice took on the tone of a master storyteller, and all the children started leaning in, sitting crosslegged in front of Max. "It all started in 1630 with our ancestor John Winthrop. It was a dark time in the world back then. The time of the Witch Hunts, with trials going on throughout the world, led by misguided zealots who feared what they could not understand. John and his wife Margaret nee Black, known to history as Margaret Tyndal also, had to hide what they were, and what better way than to join the Puritans? (I know this is not the actual history, I claim author's creative licsense!) Becoming Puritan was one of the greatest ways that they could think of to throw off the scent of the authorities in what they actually were. The trip was long, imagine spending all that time on a ship with that many people in such close quarters! But the young couple had a charm to them, spinning tales that they took from their own world into fairy tales as to not draw suspiscion onto them. The soon to be settlers began to look to John, especially when the seas would start to become rough and they began to ask him to lead them into prayer. By the time they had reached America's shores, John was looked to as the leader of the new settlers.

They had with them their children (once again, creative license here, do not shoot me! It would not be the first time an author has played it fast and loose with history for a narative *eyeballs The Tudors series writers*) Mary, Samuel, John Jr, and the eldest, Henry from off the Arbela onto the mainland, looking to do as our ancestors had done before, explore new lands, escape the hysteria and aristrocracy of Europe, and discover what they could about the Natives that they had heard about when they lived in England. In June 1630, the Winthrop Fleet arrived in what would later be called Salem. We know that name as a name of horror, but that is a tale for another time. On account of lack of food, the town "pleased them not."They proceeded to Charlestown, which pleased them less for lack of fresh water. The Puritans settled around the spring in what would become Boston, aquiring the land form the first English settler, William Blaxton. ( wiki/History_of_Boston reference) John became Govenor of the settlers. Govenor Wintrhop announced the foundation of the town of Boston on September 7, 1630, with the place named after the town of Boston in the English county of Lincolnshire, from which many of them had emigerated. Now during this time, The Winthrops were not the only magickals that had left the Old World for the new. For another well known to magickal England, also and more closely related to the Sacred 28 had also come seeking refuge.

For those who know of the founding of Ilvermorny know of Isolt Sayre, niece of Gormlaith Gaunt, the aunt from whom she was fleeing. That same Gormlaith who is distantly related to the very Dark Lord menacing so recently the English grounds in fact! Long story short, Isolt was victorious in the slaying of her personal Snake, and the Winthrop children came to know well the first students of the reknowned witch, as well as her children. Samuel married Isolt's daughter, Martha, their son Henry married Webster Boot's daughter Anne, and here we are today." Sirius could tell there were many other stories to be told, but to hear everything they had risked to gain new life in a new world thrilled him and filled him with a sense of pride. Sounded like many of these exploring relatives would have been great Grypphindors, grand adventurers he used to imagine he and Reggie were when they could sneak away from their mother and find a safe place to play as children. The short tale only left him hungry for more information. James however looked rigid at the name Gaunt. A loud beeping came to his ears, sounding like it was coming from the kitchen area. Anna Lee stood up. "And that sounds like my cue. Ladies, if you wouldn't mind assisting me in setting the table?" she said with a smile. Eugenia, Nadia, and Lils stood up and headed that way.


	6. A New Life in the New World

**Chapter 6:** A New Life in the New World

Sirius and the Potters explore magickal Boston with Will and Nadia. Lily picks out where to set up her potions shop and everyone helps to pick out a name. William explains the training James and Sirius would be doing.

*disclosure* I do not own Harry Potter. I do however own Eugenia, Max, Gaius, Anna Lee, Matthus, Judith, Rosa, Daniel, Eudora, William, Nadia, and Evie Winthrop.

Reference

Charles Winthrop/James Potter

Lilah Winthrop/Lily E Potter

Sirius Black/Atlas Winthrop

Harry Potter/ Harold (Hank) Winthrop

 **Will's POV**

It fell to Will to introduce his new family members to magickal Boston. After another blood ritual in which the blood of he and Gaius was needed, his cousin Sirius and the Potters along with Hank had changed in appearance. Most of their features were still there. Lily, now Lilah, still had her red hair and emerald green eyes, but her eyes had become larger, the shape of her face rounder and smaller, her body became petite. Sirius, now Atlas, became taller, with more muscle, his eyes a darker shade of silver, his bone structure sharper, and his black hair more of a very dark brown with hints of red. James, now Charles, lost his hazel eyes for dark silver, his nose became a bit more rounded, his need for glasses removed, his bone structure actually also became sharper, he and Atlas now looked like the actual brothers they seemed to act like they already were. Young Hank also took on the dark silver eyes, the sharper bone structure, and would no longer need glasses in the future years, becoming slightly taller than he was. No one who knew them before would even recongnize them now, inspite of all the features that they kept. The added bonus was now in Britain the magick recongonized that the Potters and Sirius Black were no more, saving them from searches and publicity about being missing that could have caused trouble down the line. And their looks were not the only things that had changed. Lilah now walked and held herself much differently from before. Gone was the no mag slouching, her back was now always straight, her gate a cool, controlled, confident stride instead of an excited, hurried gate.

Both Atlas and James had a wider gate, and a physical awareness that had not been there before. Most noteable was their eyes were no longer full of the despair of being war veterans with no hope. There was a new light to them, a hope for a better future, where fear no longer held sway over their lives with a monster in the wings waiting to destroy them all. He was actually quite happy to see it. They all doted on his little cousin Emeri, Atlas in particular extremely attentive. He smiled at the thought. That little girl was going to have him wrapped around her little finger, he was sure of that! He drove towards their home in his new Lexus SUV, Daniel and his dear little Dora nearly bouncing out of their seats in excitement. This would be their first trip into the magickal side of Boston as well. Not for the first time, he thanked Odin for the extended cab of his new vehicle! As he drove up to the new home he remembered so well from his childhood he cracked a grin at the excited looks of his new family members, who had been waiting for him. He couldn't help but roll down the window and honk the horn at them. "Well come on then! Lets get going before the rascals here start having kittens!" he remarked joyfully. Nadia hit him lightly on the arm but gave him a small smirk. "You remembered the car seats for them, right?" she asked. "Oh yeah, Lilah, the car seats are in the back, probably should do that first!" he yelled out. "Got it!" he smirked hearing her mutter something about how all men, Yanks or Brits were the same.

Atlas and Charles were half way in the SUV when Lilah shouted from the back. "Oi! No you don't you two! I didn't teach you how to strap in the children to have you make me do it! Out! And you Sir Attie, come get this second car seat!" Both he and Nadia held back laughs while they both dutifully looked down before getting out and rushing towards Lilah to do her bidding. To tell the truth, in that one moment Lilah reminded him so much of his own mother Geanie it was though she had always been a part of the family. After a highly amusing 5 minutes of their fumbling, finally Hank and Emeri were all strapped in and babbling at Daniel and Dora while Lilah, Charles, and Atlas took the bench seat behind him and Nadia and got strapped in. As they pulled out of the driveway Will pulled out his own blade and traced a rune that began to glow on the dash saying "Ut nos in magicae ex erbe super collis." causing the old visable wave of magick to encircle the vehicle and bring them into the magickal plain of the area, and changing the sights around them entirely. As the wave finished at the tires of the SUV, he could hear all the gasps behind him. "Merlin! Would you look at that! Just like they said, same area and everything! Brilliant!" he heard Charles exclaim. "In spite of all the times I do that, it never gets old, I can tell you that!" Will responded with a grin. From the rear view mirror he watched as Lilah looked out her window in awe of what she was seeing. It was a beautiful day in Boston, something that many of the magickal families were taking advantage of.

The younger children were walking with their parents, many who were floating packages in front of them to be loaded into their vehicles. A motor was heard going over the SUV causing Atlas to stare up through the window on the roof. A Harley that had been enchanted to fly came over them and past them in the air. "Wicked! I want one!" he exclaimed. Will rolled his eyes. The reckless part of his cousin, it appeared, very much remained the same! They move forward, going towards the main part of Boston, where all the shops waited. He hoped Lilah braced herself, Nadia was a shopping machine, and no doubt had plans to drag her all over all the magickal shops of the city! He wasn't looking forward to being the bag holder! "I notice that most of the people here drive muggle vehicles instead of apparating to where they wish to go." Charles commented. "Apparating comes with a certain level of discomfort, of course, but us Americans also have a love of being on the open road, taking in the scenery and enjoying the companionship that taking a trip provides. There is a charm to driving that can not be duplicated, it is a large part of American history. There is a freedom to it, a sense of adventure. Many of us here prefer to drive instead." Nadia replied to him. "It was one of the things I missed the most back in Britain. My parents taught me how to drive in the summer when I was 16. It was such a wonderful way to explore and clear my mind!" Lilah sighed happily. "For the jobs we do, you and Atlas there will need to learn to drive, as our VIPs prefer to travel by vehicle, and it makes our jobs a lot easier to be able to follow behind in such a manner." Will informed them.

Poor Atlas and Charles had no idea what awaited them at Centurian Private Security! While holding bags for their lady folk, he intended on giving them a crash course on what their training would be like, as they had passed their evalutation moderately well. They would have done better, but for the lack of knowledge of technology. He would have to see to it that they learn not only the magick required, but marksmanship with guns and physical combat, something he imagined British wizards had not trained in since the Dark Ages. His clients paid top dollar for the best, and the best is what Will gave them! He brought his focus back, as he was getting close to his preferred parking garage. This was going to be a real treat for them, he was taking them to the magickal side of the famous Faneiul Hall Marketplace, a major hub for all the magickals of the area, and just because he would be guiding them, he would make sure to note places that were important to the Revolution. He was always amused by the fact that all the stores here bared the same names as the no mag counterpart. So once he parked and everyone was out, with no small amount of protesting from Dora, Hank, and Emeri for being put into strollers and strapped in for the sake of their parents collective sanity, He led them towards one of his favorite shops, The Black Dog. As soon as they grew close Atlas gave him a look. "Really?" he asked, sarcastic, but with a amused little smirk on his face. Charles let out a little chuckle and Lilah gave Atlas a down right devilish look. "You need both no mag and regular clothing, cousin! You can't continue to transfigure the same outfit you came here in forever you know! And this is the best place in all of Boston!" he acted as innocent about it as he could.

Atlas mumbled at him underneath his breath. Nadia and Lilah then took the lead, opening up the doors to what was a lovely sports shop. Danny ran in, making a bee-line towards the newest brooms. "What was that about clothes, Will?" Atlas raised an eyebrow at him. "There is a lot of hiking trails, amongst other things that we all do. Not to mention it is always a good thing to have a pair of tennis shoes. Dress shoes are fine, but not for day to day wear! Honestly! Uncomfortable things!" Lilah actually let out a laugh at that. "Ah yes, finally some new tennis shoes! One is not meant to live in dress shoes! I think my toes alone may cry for joy! Come on Nadia, lets go to the child's section first!" she tapped Nadia on the shoulder who smiled at Will and followed the red head towards the other side of the store, towards where Danny headed. "I guess that leaves us with each other gentlemen!" he smirked at them both. He led them over to the men's section and to his amusement they barely even looked at the shoes. Lucky for them that Will was an excellent judge in size and what would be the most comfortable. Taking charge over them, he showed them where the sports robes were, more durable and made from tougher material than the general day to day robes. He also led them down to where there were t-shirts with various bands, sport teams, and logos were and proceeded to pull them down from the racks.

The Black Dog was a quick stop, in spite of all the things purchased there. The store keep had bagged their items and once they left the store Nadia shrunk things down to where they could all fit in one bag that she then proceeded to hand over to Will. The ladies broke a part from them heading towards Nadia's personal favorite clothing store L'Attitude. He silently thanked Odin that he had Atlas and Charles to take around and help shop for, so that he would not be drug around the horrid place for hours on end! But as they all needed to head for the next shop together he found some table for them to sit at. This would be as good of a time as any to tell the two men what they would be in for. "Now as you know, you have to be the best in defensive and offensive magick to be considered for a place at Centurion Security. However, there is far more that is expected of you than your magickal prowless. It is not a good thing, how reliant you two are on your wands. There are multiple stories of those who are left helpless without them. As my agents, this is unacceptable. So you will be taught in no mag weaponry as well as hand to hand combat. I will not let you out into the field until the experts say you are ready. I will have you drilling on your first day, I need to know of your physical condition, to determine what styles of hand to hand work best for you. What guns and other weaponry you would be the most proficent in." he said.

"I understand the marksmanship but do you really see things going hand to hand? I would rather not use a fist in a gunfight, or wand fight for that matter." Charles commented. "You would be surprised about the many ways such training will help you. Such as disarming an opponent in such a manner is not often expected. Learn to move the right way, and you will have them disarmed before they send a spell or get off a shot on you! We believe that one must be an expert in all forms of defense and offense at Centurion, less you find yourself off guard." Will replied. "I am more interested, to be honest, in casting with a blade. I have been since I first learned it was possible when I was 9." Atlas stated. "All in good time. What I would have you learn now is how to stop relying on magick for everything. There is a reason we do things the way we do. Using magick for everything makes one lazy, lax, and more vulnerable than you think. Having magick, in spite of how you both were raised, does not make one better or worse than those who were not. They found ways to do the things we can do, and some things that we would have never dared with no magick at all. They have had their own genius, folks like Tesla, Einstein, DaVinci, Franklin, and a man of both worlds, Galileo. Relying on magick alone can be fatal. You should take that as a lesson, and teach it to your children." Will replied. Charles nodded. "Fair enough, in a fight. I reserve judgement on the rest." causing Will to roll his eyes.

The families that his cousin and Charles came from were steeped in House Elves, amongst other things, who did everything short of wiping their asses for them in Europe. It made them vulnerable in a thousand ways that they did not even realize. It is important to be able to do for oneself, to be able to get along without having to depend on someone else if needed. Which was one of the reasons that Winthrops did not keep house elves, though he knew there were some families that did. "We will save it for another time. That being said, we have modeled our training after the US military. You will be going through bootcamp, where it won't just be your magick that we will be testing. You will be trained in hand to hand combat, marksmanship, and in several other weapons, in runes, shamanism, and also in wandless magick. We will be taking your wands for the first two weeks of your training and you will not get them back till you are either out, or you pass." both Atlas and Charles looked at him in shock. "Yes, that means no wands or magick at home. You are both going to learn from Lilah how to do things the no mag way. You will learn how to cook, clean, grocery shop, and I am most insistant on this, you WILL learn how to drive. There is a reason why my men are the best, gentlemen, they all grow through this, and you will be joining some other recruits. Just remember, This is not Auror training, and you are not in England anymore, everything you are about to learn WILL save lives." call Will crazy, but he saw something harden in Atlas, in a good way.

"I think Moody would love you!" Charles said, nodding in disbelief. Will chuckled. "He does, actually, and has been trying to implement parts of my training into the Auror program for a couple of years now, unfortunately, to many of you Brits are to set in your ways to see the benefits of what we have developed." he saw the looks of concern. "I am aware of how paranoid the man is. Since you were blood adopted, all the documents say that the Potters and Sirius Black are dead! Should you even glimpse each other, even your aura and magick will show you are Winthrop as though you were born into the bloodline. So don't you worry about that. However, I won't let anyone be around you to long from that part of the world. You still act like your old selves, and that could be a dead give-a-way to some." he finished, causing them to sigh in relief. They continued the conversation about what working for him would be like when after who knows how long, the ladies and children joined them at the table. "Come on, it's time to go to Local Charm, Nadia says the muggle side is a jewelery charm store, but that is where we can restore all the supplies we left behind!" Lilah spoke to them in a rush. "FINALLY!" Will thought to himself, taking on more bags from Nadia while Lilah did the nice thing and added them to the back of the dual stroller that held Hank and Emeri. The two tykes had grown on Will, which was one of the reasons he intended on drilling their care takers so hard. They had to be prepared for anything!

They took their places next to them, Will smiling to himself while Lilah and Nadia led the way. It look like the two had become instant friends, something that made him very happy. Nadia was very brash and tempermental, she could judge someone's nature on sight and never cared about letting someone know what she thought of them. He imagined Lilah was more than likely very much the same way. Nadia liked Anna Lee, but the woman could sometimes be annoyingly saint like where it looked like Lilah, like his Nadia, could strike with all the fury of a Valkeryie. "It sounds to me like this Dumbledore is a fool. I always thought it was true. It reminds me of Stalin vs Hitler." he internally cringed. Just because they did not trust the man intirely anymore did not mean they did not think he did not have the greater good in mind. "I actually agree, learning what I have about Dumbledore. Me, poor little muggle-born, learning that he and Grindenwald were the same! I may not remember alot, but that little part from his history rather stuck out to me on the otherside of the Viel!" Lilah said quietly. This was the part that interested him, though he would not push on the matter. He would push about Evelyn though. He DID NOT like what he learned about what happened with her! He wanted to make sure that the Evie to be had all the money at her disposal to fight her illness and be able to know her daughter, even if now she would not be anything more than a cousin.

Local Charm for them was a two storey place. They found all they needed and then some. It was in Copley that Lilah found the place for the shop. With Winthrop power they bought it on the spot. Lilah crafted a playroom for all the children there and her and Nadia decided they would run it together. Lilah named it The Cauldron.


	7. And Now for Something Completely Differe

**Chapter 7:** And Now For Something Completely Different

Regulus Black, who was on his way to destroy one of Voldemort's lockets, feels the moment Voldemort gets turned into ash and reaching the Potter's hiding place not long after the Order leaves, finds the place saturated in Old Magick. With a brother's intuition, he knows that Sirius is not dead and decides to fake his own death, to persue his own investigation. Remus Lupin also does not accept the death of his friends, and goes into research mode trying to find out what happened in that house.

Cast:

Regulus Black: Skader Keynes (think slightly older)

Remus Lupin: Andrew Garfield

 **Regulus' POV**

The pain that Regulus' felt now dwarfed that of his initiation into the Death Eaters all the years ago, when he had been a fool boy and a puppet dancing to his parents' strings. It started with his arm but it felt like the fires of the Tarturus had reached up to Earth to burn him alive from the inside out! He was nearly blind due to the pain, barely holding on just inches away from the cave ready to due in his so called Master by any means he could. The pain went on for what seemed like hours, the dancing flames, the howls and screams as though he himself was possessed reaching his own ears. By the time the pain finally ebbed enough so that he could gain coherent thought, he found himself flat on his back, and he noticed two very important things.

One, he was still by some miracle, alive. Two, he could no longer feel anything from his Master, not even distantly! Ever since he got his Mark, he could always feel him, in his thoughts, his moods, always lingering in the back of his mind, like an alien passengar he could never shake. And there was only one thing he could think of that could possibly cause that change. Someone had done it! Someone had got the bloody bastard! In spite of the pain he pulled himself to a sitting position and let out a yell of joy! Oh he knew, better than anyone, that it wasn't over, not yet! But now he actually had time! Time to go to Dumbledore like Snape had, tell him everything he knew so they could make sure that he had no horocrux to come back with! What was to be his dieing wish had actually come true!

An overwhelming thought to go see his brother formed in his mind. He understood that this might not be the best idea. However, at long last, they were finally on the same side again, and they didn't have that bastard to stand between them anymore! Perhaps with Dumbledore as a buffer they could work together to put an end to this madness before it reared ugly head again! The shock wave of magick had blown though alot of things, but there was something in the landscape, something where he knew Sirius would often be found lurking, that was different. He focussed on the area he last saw his brother in, and Apparated there.

With a pop he landed, taking a moment to once again get his berrings. And then he was nearly overwhelmed! A house, by itself, that had not been there before, one that had obviously been hidden by the Fidelus, he had suspected something of that nature. But that was not what had surprised him! He could see it, feel it still pulsing in the air, Old Magick had been used here! He heard voices, so he kept out of sight, hearing easily the voices of those from the Order. He thought about approaching them, but waited, listening. And what he heard kept him in his place! The Potters, Sirius, all gone like they had vanished, not apparated, litterally vanished!

He didn't like how Dumbledore and Moody were reacting to the whole thing, one of the things he use to try to tell his brother. He waited, till he saw every last Order member leave the now unprotected and deserted home before he came out and walked into the home. The feel of Old Magick only got stronger the further in he walked. He could still make out remaining traces of the Avada Kedarva that had been cast, but the strangest thing was, he could not catch even the slightest hint of death! He was mainly shocked because that could only mean one thing, that his brother had not exactly forsaken everything about the family. He did find drying splatters of blood, but no smell of a corpse. Even when just killed, there was always a hint of smell.

"Disapeared indeed! No, they are not dead. I would know if he was dead. Something else happened here." Regulus thought to himself. He made his way to the center, in the young child's room, and he felt a power spike through his body, both familiar and foreign. "Here!" he thought. He kneeled down, tapping the floor with his wand. "Gi meg det som skjedde med de som har utnyttet dette blodett." he commanded in Norwegian, glad he had taken up the study of some Norse magick having been inspired by his ancestors and their tales. His head jerked towards the ceiling, eyes unseeing, until they adjusted and only one thing was apparent. Somehow, if only for a brief moment, Sirius had called out to their blood, and he and the Potter's had disapeared from the timeline!

"Merlin, Sirius, what the bloody Hell did you do?!" he whispered to himself out loud. If he was to be any help to him, the Potters, or their son, he was going to have to find out, and considering the kind of magick his older brother used, it meant he would be spending a eternity within the family archives, if he could even find a way to get to them without showing the world he was still alive! "Damn you Sirius! You always do this to me! First you run away and I have to take your place because you are a selfish arsehole, now I have to do all this, just to end this all!" he ran his hand through his hair, utterly fustrated. He was beyond exhausted, emotionally and physically, he couldn't even remember the last time he had actually slept!

His magick was still recovering from dealing with that damn Horocrux, and he knew without a shadow of a doubt that he would be good to no one in his current state. He had to find a place to lay low for now. And where to do that where the panicing Death Eaters or the bloody Order of the damned Fire Chicken, as he called it, well that was now the question of the bloody hour! "I am going to find you, and when I do, I am bloody stringing you up by your small intestines!" he thought out loud again. He heaved a big sigh. Now was the time for him to be getting out, less someone else decided to show up and investigate the strange things that had occured here.

 **Remus' POV**

Remus was in his third glass of Firewhiskey, still not believing a word that Dumbledore was saying. What troubled the young werewolf was the fact that there was literally no trace of his friends! Splatters of blood, but there was no scent of a fresh kill, he would have smelt it! He was sad and confused, how they seemed to vanish off the face of the Earth, and there was the Dark Bastard's ashes, his cloak, and his wand! It did not make sense! No bodies, and no friends and here he was, all alone, barely hanging on to his humanity, less the wolf take control and he ended up doing something that could not be taken back. He sighed, trying to stop shaking, take another long draught out of his glass.

At the rate he was going, he would start picking habits up like smoking as Sirius did! A bitter laugh came out. He had been at it for several hours now, the bar keep kind and smart enough not to cut him off, as the Firewhiskey was the only thing that was keeping him sane, and strangely clear enough to think. There had to be something going on, something he just couldn't put a finger on! There had been this strange smell inside the house, metallic, but not the copper and salt kind. The air had been electric, causing him to have goosebumps that ran along his skin while the other Order members came to other conclusions. He himself was not convinced that Dumbledore or Moody bought what Minerva concluded.

There had been mentions, of Old Magick, something powerful enough to defeat the Dark Lord. And those mentions had him racking his brain, trying to recall everything Padfoot had ever told them on the matter. Prongs knew a decent amount about it to be dangerous, but Sirius being a Black, he was an expert on the subject, no matter how much unlike his family he tried to be. "You don't just forget things that are drilled into your head since the day you are able to read." he thought to himself. He could only think of one field of magick that would enable them to pull something like this off. The kind of magick that was now frowned upon in modern Wizarding Britain. "Blood magick, some type of blood magick, it has to be! Maybe runes too! I don't know! So many damned variables! Blood magick, runes, and dear Merlin, it was Samhain!" something clicked in his mind.

"A mixture, all three elements! By Merlin, what have you done Padfoot?!" he asked himself, not trusting to say it loud where others might hear him. There was only one thing he could think of to do, now that he had the building blocks as to what could have happened in Harry's room. He needed to research, and he needed materials that could be found in but a very few places. How he would be able to talk himself into one of the libraries of the Sacred 28, he had no idea. But he could be charming when he needed to be, and after what had happened to their so called master, there was about to be a lot of old, Dark families that would be needing favors to keep their sorry selves out of Azkaban.

Usually he would not be willing to make such offers to Death Eater filth, but at the moment he was out of options and only they would have the materials he needed to solve this puzzle. And he knew just which family to approach! The Malfoys would be bribing their way out of the prison, or trying their very best to, he knew that for certain. And so he would have to, what was it that the mob guy had said in one of the films Lily had made them all watch? He chuckled to himself as he thought about it. He was going to have to out Slytherin Mr. Prince Slytherin himself! "Lucius Malfoy, I'm about to make you an offer you can't refuse!" and for the first time that night, a real smile graced his face.

Something kept him from including Dumbledore in his plans. This was something that he needed to do on his own. Having a plan of action calmed his nerves enough that he was able to slowly stop his shaking, and actually enjoy his whiskey. He paid his tab and went home. Fleshing out his plan on how to trick a Pureblood into giving him access to their library all the while.


	8. Hell Week P1 Meet and Greet

**Chapter 8:** Hell Week P1 Meet and Greet

James and Sirius start what is known as Hell Week for the bootcamp aspect of their training for Centurian Security. Which means no wands! They will be drilled for endurance, strength, and physical fighting capability, but will also learn how to do things without magick, and how to strengthen their wandless magick as well.

*disclaimer* I do not own Harry Potter. I do however own William Winthrop, Virgil Hultz, Deanna Paine, Eric Gold, Samuel Madison, and Nora Franks.

Cast:

(new characters)

Virgil Hultz: Jai Courtney

Deanna Paine: Katherine Winnick

Eric Gold: Colin Morgan

Samuel Madison: Bradley James

Nora Franks: Aja King

 **James' POV**

He took his time getting ready. He didn't know how to feel about giving over his wand, the same wand he had with him since he had been but 11 years old! It had become a part of him, an extension of himself. At the same time, he saw the wisdom in what Will was saying. He also had become dependent upon it, dangerously so. He did not want to be rendered useless in a fight because someone had took his wand, or even broke it in the middle of a fight. Still, it would be a challenge, would ache like he imagined a missing limb would. He was truly rusty with wandless magick, more than he would admit out loud to anyone.

Yet, at the same time he was still adjusting to everything. For Merlin's sake, he had died just a week and a half ago! Now here he was, a new name, new face, and now changing even how he used his magick, he wondered if in a month or two there would be anything of the old James Potter left at all! He knew that on some level, Pads was feeling much of the same. It probably felt like even more of a whiplash, being part of a more modern world, where influence mattered a lot more than blood status! And how sad was it that it seemed refreshing that greed rather than pride ruled here! He had not been given much time to process all these changes.

And yet, at the same time, how marvelous it was that these were his problems! Rather an identity crisis then looking for the devil in every corner! Better this confusion than the nightmare that his home had become! Living in fear, hiding in secret, it had been no way to live! So he would square his shoulders, get over himself, and do this, and keep his family safe, build a new life away from despair and bloodshed. He went over all of this as he prepared for his first day. This day would be the first of what Will had called Hell Week. The first two weeks would determine whether new recruits would be able to proceed into further training and joining the ranks inside Centurion Security or not.

He was actually rather grateful for the man showing him the type of robes and muggle clothing he would be needing for the duration while shopping at The Black Dog. He mentally prepared himself for what would be one of the most intense string of days of his life. Quite unique actually, to have modeled the training and recruitment after the US Military. It would certainly be more gruelling than the intial Auror training he and…. well he had to get use to calling him Atlas now, had gotten before he and Lily had to go into hiding. He made his way downstairs, smiling to himself as the sound of Lils voice carried while she fed Harry and Emmie. He was quite taken with the little girl, not as much as Atlas, but still.

The dark haired todler was eatting the strange food called cereal, Cheerios it was called, which she would never take with milk. She was quiet, sometimes playing with one of the pieces. Lils was trying to get Harry to eat his scrambled eggs, but it looked like he kept dropping his fork on the floor. Something told him his boy was doing that on purpose. He let out a small laugh, which earned him his wife's ire. "Laugh it up Chuckles! Congrads, you are put on 'get Hank to eat' duty!" she declared, throwing her hands in the air. "Its alright love, you need to get dressed, you have to drive Atlas and I in today anyway. I'll make sure that he eats." he said. She heaved a big sigh. "See that you do." and gave him an apologetic smile as she got up and headed towards their bedroom.

He continued to grin, stooping down a little to look at his son. "I bet that you are more interested in what Emmie is eating, aren't you little love?!" he stated. Harry then pointed at where Emmie was trying to spin a Cheerio piece. "Lets try something then, yeah?" he asked aloud. He found the box of cereal and a small bowl, making sure not to give him milk as well. He took away the scrambled eggs, which he use to love. Harry gave him a big smile. Apparently that had been exactly what he had wanted. "Thank you Daddy!" his heart swelled as Harry gave him a big smile. Emmie looked up, smiling big and moving closer to Harry. They were going to be close, he could already tell. Like he and Atlas all over again!

He wondered when he would start referring to himself as Charles in his head. He was still wrapping his brain around calling Lily Lilah instead! Loud footsteps echoed into the kitchen indicating that Atlas was making his way down. They both were running behind, so James went ahead and filled two bowls full of the cereal as well and got the milk and silverware. "Eat up Pads, we have to have our energy up so that we can truly hate ourselves later!" he said in a jovial voice, causing his friend to groan. "Prongs, I love you, I do, but it is to early for your shite!" Atlas grumbled while coming in. James rolled his eyes at him, handing him his bowl. "Whatever Pads, we are in for Merlin knows what, we have to be our charming selves!" he responded.

Lils came back in, wacking Atlas on the back of his head as she did so. "Oi, whatcha do that for?!" he complained. "Watch your mouth! Children are present! That goes for both of you!" she eyeballed him as well as Atlas. "Yes Lils!" they both echoed in unison. She gave a gruff nod while they dug in, trying to get in as much coffee and cereal as they could before Anna Lee showed up to take the kids for the day. And speaking of Lils fellow, red headed she devil, the bell rang, causing Harry and Emmie to start sqirming to get to their new aunt. "On your best behavior! And hurry up, we need to get going or you are going to be late!" she shot at the both of them.

 **30 Minutes Later**

"If I didn't know any better, I would think you were in a rush to get rid of our charming selves, Lils!" Atlas snarked with a bow after he exited the vehicle. He had somehow managed to beat him to the front seat. "Now, you shouldn't think such things! Who doesn't like a grumpy stray on the furniture in the morning!" Lils said right back, causing him to crack a smile. It was still entertaining to watch them banter back and forth between each other. "Come on, Lilah here has to go meet with Max to start putting together

The Cauldron today, and we have to go get our arses kicked all over Boston" James wrapped an arm around Atlas' shoulders and started steering him towards what looked to muggles to be an industrial metal working building. He touched the rune coin that Will had given him and Atlas did the same. Everything seemed to spin before they were in front of the same building surrounded by a swirm of people.

Lils drove off, heading towards Max's while he and Pads entered the fray. He saw the moment, the actual moment, when his friend finally became truly awake. It was the moment he set his eyes on a toned, beautiful woman with long blond hair that was tightly braided partially at her temples on each side and the rest left free to flow down her back and glaciel blue eyes wearing an black workout outfit with yellow streaks up the sides and a pair of tennis shoes.

To James she looked absolutely fierce, the kind that Narcissa Malfoy use to try to be but this one could just pull off with little to no effort. However, unlike the former Black, with that fierceness could also be found humor in her eyes, amusement on her features as her eyes landed on the staring Padfoot, and he imagined several men doing the same behind them.

A wicked smirk streched on her lips as she gave them a nod of acknowledgement before turning back to the front. James internally groaned. Pads was not use to not being oogled by the fairer sex, afterall, even as a straight man, James could even admit that Pads was absolutely striking in appearance, there was a reason that they both could of had their pick at Hogwarts, of which his best mate took full advantage whereas he just found it annoying. Even first year he had eyes for only one girl. So for the beautiful blonde to do nothing but acknowledge his existance would mean that he would be absolutely relentless in getting her to notice him. He tried not to face palm himself. He didn't even know her and he felt sorry for her!

To distract himself from those thoughts he looked around, seeing already where the cliques were forming. There was a blonde man with dark blue eyes, good build, and relaxed demeaner making his way towards them. He actually reminded James much of himself, with an easy smile and a glint in his eye. His gate was confident as he made his way over. James had to smack Pads' arm to get his attention. "Hello there! You must be the Winthrop boys! I see you have met Deanna." he smirked good naturely at Atlas, who was still watching the blonde woman out of the corner of his eye. "Not yet, but I will, I assure you." Pads tone left no room for doubt, he was going to be watching the now named Deanna, waiting to make a move.

Just because he could, James hit his arm again. Their companion let out a laugh. "I am going to enjoy watching that! I'm Samuel by the way, Samuel Madison." he stuck his hand out. James was happy that he had been drilled in how muggles greet one another. "Charles Winthrop, friends call me Charlie." he replied, sticking out his own hand and shaking Samuel's. "Oi, oh yeah, um sorry about that, name's Atlas!" Pads followed suit, shaking the man's hand. "I hope you Brits are up for whats coming. This is going to be brutal! They don't mess around at Centurion, the only accept the best, and there is a reason that they call it Hell Week." and finally that caught his best mate's full attention. Both would be very interested in learning a little bit more about what they were about to be in for.

While focusing on Samuel another man made a way towards them through the small crowd. "Hey Sam, wait up!" James looked up to see a man of mid build with black hair and stone grey eyes. There was almost an innocence to his face, his gate confident, but not so strident as his friend's was. Samuel rolled his eyes while Pads tried to hide a smirk. James couldn't blame him, there was something in the dark haired man's demeaner that instantly reminded him of Remus. He turned his mind from those thoughts as quickly as possible, feeling the pang of loss for their friend and fellow Marauder. Samuel turned towards his friend and waited, an annoyed but amused expression on his face. Finally join them, he turned back to him and Pads. "And this idiot is Eric Gold!" he introduced them.

Nervously, the man who had just been introduced ran a hand through the hair at the back of his scalp. "Oh hello!" he said sheepishly. He glared at Samuel. "Are you ever not going to be a royal pain in the ass Sam?" his blunt good natured quip made both he and Atlas bust out in laughter. Eric also reached out a hand. This time Atlas was first. "Atlas Winthrop, it's nice to meet you Eric." he said with a smile. "Right, one of the Brit Winthrop boys, we heard you would be joining. You will learn that word travels rather fast in Wizarding Boston." he said lightly. James reached out to shake his hand next. "Charles, and like I told your friend here, you can call me Charlie." he said with a grin. "Atlas here was just telling us about how he wants to 'get to know' Deanna." Samuel said jovially, hands forming air quotes.

Eric eyed Atlas. "I wish you good luck, it was nice to know you, you know, while you were still alive." he said in mock seriousness patting his shoulder. Pads eyebrows rose. "She doesn't look like an Ice Queen, not that it would deter me anyway, all ice has to melt sometime." he replied. Sam just simply gave him an amused smirk. "Deanna Paine is not like those English girls you might be use to. That girl is my proof that the Vikings didn't die out, they just pretended to become English or Icelandic! It is going to take a lot more than looks and wit to get her attention, Pretty Boy!" Eric said jovially. Atlas simply nodded. "Very good, I like a challenge, rather refreshing actually." sounding like he was talking as much to himself as current company. James heaved a sigh.

A wicked gleam suddenly lit in Eric's eyes as he gazed into the crowd once more. "Speaking of suitors who may or may not have a death wish, isn't that Nora Franks Sam?" he said smugly. Both James and he followed the slightly smaller man's gaze to land on an absolutely gorgeous African American woman, also toned with long hair pulled into a high pony tail wearing a similar outfit to Deanna's only dark blue with white stripes running up the leggings of it and up the sleeves. She was making her way up to Deanna, said pony tail blowing strands here and there into the brisk Boston morning. What made James smile was the nervous gaze Samuel gave the woman, with a longing in his eyes he recongnized all to well. After all, he gazed at Lils that way all throughout Hogwarts, still did to that very day. As he watched he found it to be quite apparent that Denna and Nora were close, he did not even need to look at Pads to know he was noting it.

Sometimes Atlas could be down right analytical and predatory when it came to a female he fancied, especially when they did not immediately fall for his charms. As if to prove the point, a thoughtful grin graced his friend's face. "You fancy her then?" he asked Samuel. Said man glared at Eric, who didn't look the least bit sorry. Suddenly looking sheepish, he ran a hand through his blond hair and answered "whats not to fancy about her?". Oh yeah, that man was definately crazy about the woman, he remembered acting in a similar manner when trying to get Lils to so much as look in his general direction. Before they could get deeper into conversation however, everyone was interupted when a loud and commanding voice called out to the crowd.

"Alright you maggots, eyes to the front!" and as though a spell had been cast, all chatter had ceased, as had movement. James looked towards the front of the building, where an impressively intimidating man commanded their attention. He was an attractive, atheletic looking blonde, covered in tattoos. He could almost make out what looked to be one on the man's neck. His eyes were the definition of cold blue steel, his frame powerful, his voice deep. James would not be at all surprised if before he came to Centurion Security the man before them had actually been in the US Military. He wore what looked like military casual, with a plain white t-shirt, camo pants, and combat boots. His blonde hair was shaved on all sides accept up top, where it was left a little long and swept back.

"My name is Virgil Hultz, YOU will not use that name, to YOU maggots I am CO, for those to stupid to understand what that means, I am your Commanding Officer, and for this next week, I own you! Now, you will enter the building, single file, and give me your name. Once you enter that building, you belong to me! You will surrender your wand, athame, or any other magickal items that you have with you! It is my job to test you, to push you past your limit, to show you the weak little worms that you are, and make you better, or break you. Now, line up, and maggots….welcome to Hell!" he smirked at the crowd. Atlas looked like he was about to say something, but James pinched him, HARD! Their CO did not look like a man to mess with, this wasn't Hogwarts nor was the man anything like Moody!

They all lined up, no longer looking anywhere but the front. It was quite a feat to pull off to get any Marauder to line up like that, so James was entirely sure what to think. He was suddenly a lot less willing to part from his wand, that was for certain! Due to nearly being late, the four of them were near to last, and so it took 15 minutes before they made it to the front. James stepped forward first. "Charles Winthrop, CO." he said looking up, gazing into the steel blue eyes up close, and feeling even more sure that this man had seen things even he, James Potter, member of the Order of the Phoneix, had never seen before. "Ah yes, one of the British shits I am going to have to endure. Your last name will do you no favors here. I will expect you to be better than everyone else, I will be having my eye upon you, understood?" he said with a cruel smile. "Yes sir, CO." he said softly.

"I don't think I heard you, maggot. You will speak up when you address me! Now is that understood?" he now understood truly what he meant when Will said he ran recruiting like US boot camp. "Yes sir, CO!" he said clearly and loudly, eyes to the front, not looking at him. "Move on, and don't take to long." he said, voice sounding almost amused as he turned from James to Pads behind him. "Something funny Pretty Boy?" he asked him. "No sir, CO sir! Atlas Winthrop, CO!" he heard behind him loudly. "I've got plans for you Pretty Boy, don't you go soft and quit on me!" he heard as the voice got softer and softer as he moved further inside. But a few feet from the right he nearly jumped when he heard right in his ear, "All magickal items, your wands, blades, and athames you will put here!" he looked over and saw what was a giant vault room.

The reluctance to give up his wand, even knowing that he would be getting it back, almost became overwhelming! He had to made himself think that had he been better trained, not so reliant on his wand, then he, not the Dark Lord, would of had the advantage. That he needed to be better, to be stronger, and therefore not so reliant on that wand. He needed more than the type of magick that he learned at Hogwarts. And so finally, he gave off his wand, feeling naked without it, like he just cut off his hand and gave it over to the man who seemed to run the vault room. He heaved a sigh to himself. That only seemed to prove the point. He could not afford to be rendered useless without his wand.


	9. Hell Week Part 2: Welcome to my Nightmar

**Hell Week Part 2: Welcome to my Nightmare**

Sirius and James learn a brand new meaning to the word Hell as Virgil, Aasne, Alex, Darah, Yoshiiku, and Ayase shatter their preconceptions of themselves and the ability to fend off attacks, physical and magical alike. They learn where their education has been lacking.

Cast:

Aasne Hultz- Scarlett Johansen

Alex Adams- Sebastian Stan

Darah Rhodes- Kat Graham

Yoshiiku Ikari- Jet Li

Ayase Arashi- Kumiko Aso

"Welcome to my nightmare

Welcome to my breakdown

I hope I didn't scare you

That's just the way we are when we come down

We sweat and laugh and scream here

'cause life is just a dream here

You know inside you feel right at home here"

Excerpt from Welcome to my Nightmare by Alice Cooper

 **Sirius' POV**

Normally he would have scoffed at words like that which came out of his new CO's mouth. Of all his faults, no one could ever accuse him of having any sense of self preservation. But something in Virgil Hultz's voice sent a shiver down Sirius' spine. It was very different from the sense of fear he felt when fighting Death Eaters, being in the middle of a war. It was the shock of cold water dousing you. A sense of foreboding, of knowing that you were about to learn that everything you thought you knew was wrong, and learning that you would not be the same person that walked in to the building.

Schooling his features as he always had, he wore a mask as he entered the building, moving towards the vaults right after James. His best mate's movements were sluggish, he was filled with much the same feelings he was, he was sure. This was unchartered territory for them. More so than the shift over into the New World. He decided he did not want to remain on this train of thought so instead he chose to pull up the image of the gorgeous, fierce looking Deanna Paine with eyes like ice and smile as dangerous as any curse or blade.

He had his pick of the ladies of Hogwarts, had been with many girls. But he had never laid his eyes on a woman that looked like her before! Everything about her was a challenge, a provocation. She reminded him of a white tiger and he had been entranced, HIM! He who was usually entrancing others, more often than not without even intending to. "Yes, I will be watching her." he thought to himself as he handed in his wand. As he did he felt a strange sense of release. As though the weight of all the Pureblood lies had been lifted off of him as he watched it be locked away.

As apprehensive as he felt about what was about to start, he was also intrigued by the training. It was certainly more well rounded and realistic than anything he and James and received in the Auror Training program. He was very interested in learning how to win a physical fight, how to incorporate such techniques in a magickal duel or battle. He was rudely brought out of his thoughts as a voice yelled out to them all. The sheer volume shocked him to the point he blanked out, eyes turning to what looked to be a very large auditorium. Not long after James as well as Eric and Sam found him and walked him over in the back of the rest of the crowd.

A dangerous looking blonde woman was standing next to his CO wearing a smirk that caused him to gulp. Her stance was casual, deceptively so. Deadly, a woman who seemed like her secrets had secrets. There was something predatory in the way she looked at all of them. Though she did not look directly at him he felt utterly naked. There was others standing with them. A dark haired man with eyes nearly black, well built, a intelligence there and an awareness of the room that could only come from having spent YEARS out in the field. He stood a bit back from others, his arms folded across his chest. His hair was left long, stopping half an inch from his shoulders.

The closest to him was one of the most gorgeous females he had ever seen. The only one that seemed of similar age as the rest of the recruits. Mocha skin paired with beguiling jade eyes, black hair swept back in a tight intricate braid that was pinned to her head and an a disarming smile. Yet the power that came off the girl was unlike anything he felt before. It filled the entirety of the room with an ease that he found himself envying. He liked her immediately, there was a glint in her eyes that told him had she been at Hogwarts they would have been good friends indeed!

Directly behind the blonde and his CO were two others. They looked older than the others, asian in origin. The male had his hair cropped short, his stance and build speaking of years of self discipline and training. He wore a smirk that just screamed trouble, looking like he knew he was going to enjoy what came after. There was something utterly lethal in his eyes. Something he was sure that would even have Voldemort second guessing himself and taking a step back. He had to admit, he was curious about that one. The stories he must have!

The female in an odd way reminded him of Dumbledore. Well, before he found out about what Albus had got up to in his youth and carried over into the war, that was. Where the others were utterly fierce, there was wisdom in those black eyes. Knowledge that came from years of experience. Her stance was easier than all the others. As though she felt no need for it, like she could handle whatever came and so had no reason to always feel as though she needed to be alert. Yet he felt that this did not mean he should feel like he could relax around her. Such easiness in the world they lived in had to be earned after all. More than the others, she would be able to know all their faults.

He was drawn out of his thoughts as the fierce blonde began to speak. "Now that we have your undivided attention, bring your eyes to the front!" her voice cracked out like a whip. Everything went dead silent. There was an amused look in his CO's eyes while her's continued to peruse the crowd. "With your wands you are to leave everything you think you know about magick, and about yourselves. Your pride we will take from you first. It has no place here. Pride gets you killed. Being unprepared gets you killed. And you my dear little idiots, are unprepared! Your schooling, your lessons, your magick little homes and charmed little lives have made you weak, made you dependent!

Useless without a wand in your hand! So weak and so easy to kill! A muggle with training and a gun could end you all before you could shoot off one spell. Always remember, a bullet moves at the speed of sound, it takes less than a second to pull a trigger, I promise you, a man with a gun will always be faster than a man with a wand!" her words struck at him in a way he never anticipated! Sure, in his head he knew that, with what little exposure he had through Lils to the muggle world, but being here, its like it finally cemented!

"These next few weeks will do one of two things to you. You will either break utterly under the weight of that weakness, being shown how deeply it runs in you, or you will break and let yourself to be reformed, made into something faster, stronger, smarter, better. One thing is always true, once you leave these walls, you will not be the same person you were before you entered. So now it comes to it. For those of you who do not think you can handle this, that you made a mistake and wish to return to your ignorance and self delusions, now is the time for you to leave. The vaults will open for you to retrieve your things and you will be escorted off the premises. No one will stop you. Be honest with yourself. Can you really handle this? To be broken and remade, to change everything about yourself?

To not recognize who you see in the mirror? I will leave you in silence to make your decision. Those who decide not to stay may make their way towards the back." Sirius could not help it, he had always been a curious creature, and so trying to be discreet he looked around out of the corners of his eyes. There were a few who did not look ashamed to admit to themselves that maybe this program was not for them. He did not blame them. Not everyone was meant to live that life. Tales of legends and longing for glory was one thing, but being a living part of those tales actually going through those trials was entirely another. He and James of all people would know!

When the last had retrieved their things the blonde spoke again. "For those of you that are left, you better hope you made the right decision. Because that was the last chance to bow out gracefully. But I digress. Back to business!" an evil smile spread across her face. "We here are your instructors, mentors, your commanding officers, and your own personal demons for the next few weeks. If you progress past that, one of us will take you into specialization training. So introductions I think are in order, so I shall start. My name is Aasne Hultz, yes I am your CO's older sister, head of Intelligence. It is my job to get inside your head, show you yourself, make you better, think faster, and view everything from all angles in the field.

I promise you, I am your worst nightmare come to life! You will call me Agent Hultz or nothing at all." During her speech, Sirius looked at James who looked like he was trying to hide sheer terror. He smirked a little. The Agent in a way reminded him of Lils. Which meant Prongs was terrified! The beautiful African American girl came up next. "Many of you looked up to me with looks of relief as you came in. I will be your first lesson. You should never trust what you first see. Nothing is ever as it appears, and if you were expecting a pushover, well, I guess you will just have to see, won't you?" he heard the snickers from the other instructors behind her.

"I am the one that gets called in when things go wrong. Name is Darah Rhodes but you will call me Captain, or nothing at all. My job is to teach you how to change a situation, how to get out the "VIP" at any cost, even if the mission fails. And make no mistake, even should you thrive here, you cannot and will not win them all. You will learn a brutality from me of which you never thought you were capable, and a coldness that will keep you up at night, but you will learn how to not die." and there went his sense of comfort with that one. The look on her face showed she knew she ripped the rug out from under many the feet in the room. It was a lesson he was not soon to forget. Mistakes like that was what got them all in this situation in the first place!

The stoic looking man with the dark eyes came forward next, shooting the Captain an amused smile before rounding on them. "My name is Alex Adams. Former US Navy Seal. I am here to show you how dangerous and deadly a no maj can be. To teach you whatever edge you think your magick gives over those without it, you are wrong! Training, advanced technology, advanced weapons and intelligence gathering more often outstrips those who are not prepared.

Unlike the others here, I do not have magick but I promise you I am faster than you, smarter than you, stronger than you, and I would have you down before you even have a chance to think of a spell. Once you get that through your head, you will learn these skills and how to adapt them to yourself. If you do not, you won't make it through this program. I do not allow liabilities into the field. This is life and death ladies and gentleman." he finished speaking. "Bloody hell, damn muggle is scary as Hell!" he restrained himself from physically shaking himself.

He found himself believing the man completely. The asian male and female moved forward. "I guess it is our turn then, Ayase." the male spoke, his accent slight, he obviously had spent many years in America. He made him the most uneasy out of them all, if he was honest with himself. Though if you asked him why, he could not tell you. The female, Ayase wore a small smile. "My name is Ikari Yoshiiku, you shall address me as Ikari sensie at all times, for I am your teacher and I will not tolerate any disrespect. I will teach you things about magick that your ancestors long ago forgot. How mind, body, and magick are one and should be used as such.

How to discipline your whole self to act as a single unit, not separate entities contained in flesh. You will be shown things about yourself that you wish to hide from. I will pull out your worse insecurities, pull out all your secrets, expose any and all mental and emotional weakness and you will face yourself. For how do you expect to master an enemy if you cannot master yourself? Any enemy can use your own weakness as the very weapon to kill you and any you hope to protect." Sirius figured that was how Voldemort got the majority of his followers, exploiting their fears, building on their greed and misplaced sense of superiority. "If only Reggie could have escaped that fate, if only I tried harder." the depressing though came.

Ikari sensie apparently had finished, for the woman moved forward. "My name is Arashi Ayase, you will call me Arashi sensie. I will teach you what you call with far to much simplicity "wandless magick." Where Yoshiiku will teach you how to feel and move the energy around you, I will show you how to channel it all, how to turn it into something living, changing the environment around you. How to use that power to manifest your will onto the physical plane. It is not an easy art to learn, and in the beginning it will drain you in ways you have never been drained before. But as you grow in all aspects of your training you will grow in this art as well. It is their job to break you, it is mine to start your rebuilding." Though gentler than the others, Sirius could feel a healthy apprehension on this.

This part of the training would feel alien to him and James. Part of him, yes he always said magick was. But she was talking about something entirely different. This was about being utterly One with every aspect and using that to manifest. All of this would be far different than anything he had ever experienced before. And he knew that none of them would have anytime to dwell on what had just been said. For CO grinned that evil smile at them all and the only thing he could think was "we are so bloody dead!"


End file.
